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Low Turnout in Togo Municipal Elections Seen as Test for the Country's President
TOGO, JUL 17 – More than 4.5 million registered voters faced low turnout amid protests and a heavy security presence during Togo's first municipal elections under a new parliamentary constitution.
- On Thursday, voters in Togo cast ballots in municipal elections, in 117 municipalities, amid low turnout and a tense atmosphere, according to the Independent National Electoral Commission.
- With a new parliamentary system in place, these polls followed constitutional changes this May and leadership shifts, as Faure Gnassingbe became Council of Ministers president two months ago.
- ECOWAS and African Union observers monitored the polls in Lomé, while security forces patrolled major intersections, according to the electoral body.
- Despite calls for protests, Lomé’s streets remained quiet and polling stations were largely deserted due to voter apathy and fear.
- These elections are viewed as a leadership test, with diaspora-based social media influencers and civil society groups urged a boycott.
15 Articles
15 Articles
Togo elections face backlash over reform and indefinite rule
Togo elections on 17 July elected leaders for 117 municipalities in nationwide municipal polls. Security forces deployed across major cities ahead of the elections as tensions escalated following opposition-led protests on 16 July 2025. The elections follow a constitutional reform in May 2024, shifting Togo to a parliamentary system. Furthermore, President Faure Gnassingbé was appointed President of the Council of Ministers (PCM) in May 20…
Associated Press News
Low turnout in Togo municipal elections seen as test for the country's president
Togolese voters have voted in municipal elections, seen as a test for the country's leader Faure Gnassingbé, who has faced rare and deadly protests after a recent constitutional reform that could effectively keep him in power indefinitely.
On Thursday 17 July, the polling stations opened in Togo for the renewal of the mayors and municipal councillors of the 117 communes in the country. These are the third municipalities in the history of the country and the first of the new Republic, definitively established at the beginning of May. A vote that took place in peace and for which the Togolese did not move much, despite a tense socio-political context.
Low turnout for municipal elections in Togo: Silent boycott or just a slow start?
Polling stations in Togo opened on July 17, 2025 for the country's municipal elections. But by mid-morning, just a trickle of voters had been to cast their votes in the capital Lomé. Are voters boycotting the poll or just not interested?
In June, dozens of young people went down the street to challenge the arrest of critical voices, the rise in electricity prices and, above all, the new Constitution, which consolidates Faure Gnassingbé's power.
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