Next Guinea-Bissau parliamentary election
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All 102 seats in the National People's Assembly 52 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Parliamentary elections were scheduled to be held in Guinea-Bissau on 24 November 2024,[1] but were postponed indefinitely by president Umaro Sissoco Embaló in early November 2024.[2] Embaló had earlier dissolved the opposition controlled parliament on 4 December 2023, saying an "attempted coup" had prevented him from returning home from COP28 climate conference.[3]
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This was the second early dissolution by incumbent president Embaló, with his first dissolution of parliament being in 2022, leading to an opposition victory in the 2023 parliamentary election.[4] In response to the dissolution, parliamentary speaker Domingos Simões Pereira accused the president of carrying out a "constitutional coup d'état."[5] Incumbent president Embaló would go on to fire the prime minister Geraldo Martins, who was appointed by the PAIGC-led National Assembly and instead appoint Rui Duarte de Barros by presidential decree.[6]
Electoral system
The 102 members of the National People's Assembly are elected by two methods; 100 by closed list proportional representation from 27 multi-member constituencies and two from single-member constituencies representing expatriate citizens in Africa and Europe.[7]
Issues
Various opposition parties have criticized incumbent president Embaló, accusing him of authoritarianism and wanting to establish a dictatorship.[1] Beyond the outcome of the elections, the broader narrative in Guinea-Bissau in 2024 will revolve around the imperative of establishing and maintaining momentum for a stable system of governance. Central to this narrative will be the efforts to fortify institutional frameworks that serve as guardrails against the abuse of power.[8]
According to observers, the conditions for new elections have not been met due to organisational challenges. One major issue is the expiration of the terms of the commission members responsible for overseeing elections. Typically, these members would be appointed by parliament, however since the parliament has been dissolved, there is no entity in place to facilitate the appointment of new commission members.[1]
References
- ^ a b c "Presidente da Guiné-Bissau marca legislativas antecipadas para 24 de novembro". RTP (in Portuguese). 16 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
- ^ "Guinea Bissau President postpones elections indefinitely". Punch. 4 November 2024.
- ^ "Guinea-Bissau's president dissolves parliament after 'attempted coup'". France 24. 4 December 2023. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ "Guinea-Bissau's president issues a decree dissolving the opposition-controlled parliament". AP News. 4 December 2023. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ "Guinea-Bissau: President dissolves parliament after coup bid". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ "Guinea-Bissau opposition fears 'dictatorship'". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ Electoral system IPU
- ^ Cook, Joseph Siegle and Candace. "Africa's 2024 Elections: Challenges and Opportunities to Regain Democratic Momentum". Africa Center for Strategic Studies. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
