Tanzanians head to the polls on Wednesday in a high-stakes election widely expected to secure another term for President Samia Suluhu Hassan, after the country’s two main opposition parties were disqualified from participating.
Voters will not only select their president but also elect members of parliament for the 400-seat National Assembly and representatives for the semi-autonomous Zanzibar archipelago, which will also choose its own president and lawmakers.
Opposition Barred, Limited Competition
The election takes place without the participation of CHADEMA, the main opposition party led by Tundu Lissu, who is currently facing treason charges allegations he strongly denies. The National Electoral Commission (NEC) disqualified CHADEMA in April after it refused to sign an electoral code of conduct, effectively removing it from the ballot.
Similarly, Luhaga Mpina, the presidential candidate for the ACT-Wazalendo party, was barred following an objection by the Attorney General. The disqualifications leave minor-party candidates as the only challengers to Hassan’s ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), which has held power since its founding in 1977.
CCM, whose predecessor helped lead Tanzania’s independence movement, continues to dominate national politics nearly five decades later.
Election Oversight and International Concern
The electoral commission has pledged to release official results within three days of the vote, with polls opening at 7 a.m. local time and closing at 4 p.m.
Rights groups, however, have raised serious concerns about the credibility of the process. Amnesty International accused Tanzanian authorities of cracking down on dissent and silencing critics charges the government has denied.
Meanwhile, the U.S.-based Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) described CCM’s campaign as an effort to maintain its position as “the last hegemonic liberation party in southern Africa”, following political challenges faced by ruling parties in South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe.
Hassan’s Campaign and Promises
President Hassan, whose image dominates campaign posters across the country, has spent recent months touring Tanzania, highlighting achievements such as expanding road and railway networks and boosting power generation. She has also pledged to hire more teachers and invest further in social infrastructure during her next term.
When she took power in 2021, Hassan initially earned international praise for relaxing restrictions on political opposition and media freedom, marking a break from the repressive rule of her predecessor, John Magufuli.
Growing Allegations of Repression
In recent years, however, human rights advocates have accused the government of abductions and intimidation targeting political critics. Earlier this month, a former ambassador to Cuba and outspoken critic of Hassan’s administration was abducted from his home by unidentified individuals, according to his family. Police say an investigation is ongoing.
Last year, Hassan ordered an official inquiry into alleged abductions, though no findings have been released. She maintains that her administration is committed to human rights and transparency, while government spokesperson Gerson Msigwa dismissed Amnesty’s latest report as “inaccurate and misleading.”
“The portrayal of Tanzania as a country that tolerates arbitrary arrests and suppression of freedoms is inconsistent with our legal safeguards,” Msigwa said in a statement.
Despite these assurances, opposition leaders and international observers argue that the election highlights Tanzania’s shrinking democratic space, with President Hassan poised for an uncontested victory that could further entrench CCM’s long-standing dominance.
