In a decisive political consolidation, the ruling party in Ivory Coast has secured a commanding supermajority in the nation's parliament, cementing President Alassane Ouattara's control over the country's institutions.
Landslide Victory for the RHDP
The Independent Electoral Commission announced results on Monday, revealing that the Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace (RHDP) won a staggering 197 out of 255 seats in the National Assembly. This represents more than 77 percent of the parliamentary seats and marks a significant gain of 34 seats compared to the outgoing assembly.
This parliamentary triumph comes just two months after President Alassane Ouattara secured his fourth term in office in October, winning nearly 90 percent of the vote. Those presidential elections were notable for the exclusion of the country's two main opposition figures, who were removed from the electoral lists.
Complete Institutional Control
With this overwhelming victory, President Ouattara, who has been in power since 2011, now holds sway over all branches of government. His party already commands a large majority in the Senate and leads in approximately 80 percent of regions and two-thirds of municipalities across Ivory Coast.
The RHDP demonstrated its dominance not only in its historical stronghold in the north, dominated by Ouattara's Malinke ethnic group, where it scored up to 100 percent in some areas, but also made significant inroads in the southern and western regions, areas traditionally favorable to the opposition.
Opposition Weakened, Voter Apathy High
The main opposition, the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI), suffered a major setback, seeing its number of parliamentary seats halved from 66 to just 32. The other significant opposition party is the African People's Party--Ivory Coast (PPA-CI) of former president Laurent Gbagbo.
Despite the high stakes, voter participation remained a concern. The turnout for Saturday's parliamentary elections was recorded at 35 percent, which is two points lower than the 2021 polls. This follows a pattern of low engagement, as the presidential election in October also saw about half of the registered voters abstaining.
The results solidify a new political era in Ivory Coast, where the ruling RHDP party has effectively consolidated power across the executive and legislative branches, while facing the challenge of a disengaged electorate and a weakened opposition.
