Tanzania is facing intensifying turmoil after President Samia Suluhu Hassan claimed a near-total victory in an election widely dismissed by critics as undemocratic. Protests broke out on voting day after authorities barred the president’s two main challengers, prompting security forces to fire live rounds and tear gas at crowds who tore down campaign posters and set government buildings ablaze.
The true death toll remains contested. CHADEMA, the main opposition party, alleges that hundreds have been killed, while UN reports confirm at least 10 deaths across several cities. The government has offered no official figures and rejects the opposition’s numbers as inflated. Foreign ministers from the UK, Canada, and Norway have cited credible evidence of numerous fatalities and injuries caused by the state’s heavy-handed response.
Despite the electoral commission’s claim of an 87% voter turnout and nearly 32 million votes for Hassan, eyewitness accounts suggest sparse participation amid widespread disruption. CHADEMA, disqualified months earlier after refusing to sign a controversial electoral code, denounced the process as a staged “coronation.” Its leader, Tundu Lissu—currently imprisoned on treason charges—had long demanded electoral reforms.
President Hassan initially earned praise for easing repression after assuming office in 2021, but rights groups and opposition activists argue that her administration has increasingly relied on arrests and alleged abductions to silence dissent. Although Hassan previously ordered an inquiry into these reports, no results have been released.
With major opposition parties barred from the ballot, critics say the election lacked legitimacy, deepening concerns that Tanzania is drifting toward entrenched authoritarianism.
