2013 Rwandan parliamentary election explained

Election Name:Rwandan parliamentary election, 2013
Country:Rwanda
Type:Parliamentary
Previous Election:Rwandan parliamentary election, 2008
Previous Year:2008
Next Election:Rwandan parliamentary election, 2018
Next Year:2018
Ongoing:no
Election Date:16–18 September 2013
Party1:RPF
Seats Before1:36
Seats1:37
Seat Change1:1
Colour1:0087DC
Party2:PSD
Seats Before2:7
Seats2:7
Seat Change2:-
Colour2:007FFF
Party3:PL
Seats Before3:4
Seats3:5
Seat Change3:1
Colour3:008000

Parliamentary elections were held in Rwanda between 16 and 18 September 2013.[1] The result was a victory for the Rwandan Patriotic Front, which maintained its absolute majority in the Chamber of Deputies, winning 41 of the 80 seats.

Electoral system

Of the 80 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, 53 were directly elected by closed list proportional representation with an electoral threshold of 5%. A further 27 seats were indirectly elected by local and national councils, including 24 reserved for women, two for representatives of youth and one for representatives of handicapped.[2]

Conduct

In the weekend preceding the election, on 13 and 14 September, two grenades exploded in a Kigali market.[3] The Rwandan government blamed the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), the remnants of the force responsible for the 1994 Genocide.[2] Questions were asked about the credibility of the election as transparent, free and fair.[4]

Voting was otherwise reported as orderly.

Notes and References

  1. http://allafrica.com/stories/201306070484.html Rwanda: MPs' Nomination Scheduled for July
  2. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2013/09/20139169246707534.html Rwandans vote in parliamentary elections
  3. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2013/09/2013914172413986.html Two die in grenade attacks in Rwanda
  4. https://www.aljazeera.com/program/inside-story/2013/9/16/rwanda-a-democracy-in-the-making Rwanda: A democracy in the making?