Burundians go to the polls in first legislative elections since 2020

Burundians are voting on Thursday in the country’s first legislative elections since 2020, when President Evariste Ndayishimiye came to office.

They will be choosing lawmakers to serve on the 123-seat National Assembly, the lower house of parliament.

Most members are directly elected via party lists, while the rest are co-opted in order to meet gender and ethnic quotas.

The vote, that includes local elections,  is widely seen as a test of Ndayishimiye’s leadership.

His National Council for the Defence of Democracy–Forces for the Defence of Democracy (CNDD–FDD) party secured a super majority in the 2020 poll.

But while he has been praised for gradually ending years of isolationism under his predecessor Pierre Nkurunziza’s chaotic and bloody rule, the country’s human rights record remains poor.

There have been ongoing reports of repression against journalists, activists, and opposition figures.

Last month, media watchdog, Reporters without Border, warned of escalating violence against journalists ahead of the polls.

It said the climate of fear created by the security forces attempted to muzzle the essential work of the independent press in the run-up to the vote.

It is the first time the legislative and local elections are being held separately from the presidential poll which is scheduled to take place in 2027.

This follows a constitutional amendment that extended the presidential term from five to seven years.

The vote is being closely monitored, both locally and internationally, as a test of Burundi’s commitment to political reform and democratic governance.