The incumbent president of Tanzania, John Magufuli of the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (Revolutionary Party), has been declared the winner of the presidential elections which held on the 28th of October 2020 after securing more than 84% of the votes. His main opponent, Tundu Lissu, earned just 13% of the vote, according to the official count. Voter turnout was pegged at 50.7% with 15 million out of the 29 million registered voters showing up at the polls while 260,000 votes were declared invalid. The ruling party also secured nearly every seat in parliament though final results of parliamentary elections have not been announced yet.
Issues to Consider:
Repression of Dissent: The government of President John Magufuli has stifled media, civil society and opposition voices. Reports of intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrests and physical attacks against political opponents, journalists, women human rights defenders and other activists have been widely spread under his administration and intensified in the run-up to the elections. An internet shutdown has also been in effect across Tanzania. In addition to these human rights violations, Tanzanians who are not satisfied with the outcome of the presidential elections cannot contest the results. By Tanzanian law, results declared by the electoral commission cannot be challenged in court only results of parliamentary elections can be challenged.
Flawed Elections: While voters were generally able to exercise their voting rights at the polls, Tanzania Elections Watch warned that heavy police and military presence as well as the actions of these security forces created a climate of fear which in turn undermines voter turnout. Also, Tanzania’s two main opposition parties (CHADEMA and ACT Wazalendo parties) have called for a re-run of Wednesday’s election after alleging widespread fraud. The US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Tibor Nagy, in a tweet expressed concern in the process “we remain deeply concerned about reports of systematic interference in the democratic process. We continue to review credible allegations of the use of force against unarmed civilians.” echoing a statement released by the US Embassy in Tanzania. The election also took place with little monitoring from foreign observers and most international media were unable to gain accreditation to cover voting on the mainland.
Bottomline
The Chama Cha Mapinduzi has been Tanzania’s ruling party since its independence in 1961 but has been widely accused of a slide into autocracy under President Magufuli. It remains to see whether Tanzanians will accept the outcome of the polls or take to the streets as opposition leaders have suggested.
