Dar es Salaam. Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM), Tanzania’s ruling party, was declared the winner Thursday in all street, village, and sub-village local government elections held on November 27, 2024, across the country, accompanied by reports of irregularities, including the presence of fake ballots and an interference of law enforcement authorities in the exercises.

Mr Mohamed Mchengerwa, whose Ministry of Local Government and Regional Administration oversaw the elections, announced the not-very-surprising results in Dodoma yesterday, thanking all parties that participated. The following are the election results as announced by the minister:

At the village level, 12,271 out of 12,280 village chairpersons who were supposed to be voted were elected. In this election, CCM won 12,150 villages, equivalent to 99.01 per cent. It was followed by CHADEMA, which won 97 villages (0.79 per cent), ACT-Wazalendo, 11 villages (0.09 per cent), CUF, 10 villages (0.08 per cent), NCCR-Mageuzi, UMD, and ADC, which won one village each.

Mr Mchengerwa said nine villages did hold elections due to various reasons, including the deaths of candidates after the appointment. 

At the street level, 4,264 out of 4,264 street chairpersons who were supposed to be voted were elected. Here, CCM won 4,213 or 98.83 per cent of all streets. CHADEMA came second, winning 36 streets (0.84 per cent), followed by ACT-Wazalendo with nine streets (0.21 per cent), CUF with four streets (0.09 per cent), and CHAUMA with one street (0.02 per cent).

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According to Mr Mchengerwa, who doubles as Rufiji MP (CCM), in one street in Sumbawanga, no winner was declared because two candidates got the same amount of vote.

At the sub-village level, 63,849 sub-villages out of 63,886 that were expected to participate in the exercise held elections. CCM also won in a landslide, taking over 62,728 sub-villages, or 98.26 per cent of all participating sub-villages.

It was followed by CHADEMA with 853 sub-villages (1.34 per cent), ACT-Wazalendo with 150 (0.23 per cent), CUF 78 (0.12 per cent), NCCR-Mageuzi 10 (0.02 per cent), UDP six (0.01 per cent), UMD two (0.003), and ADC with one sub-village (0.002 per cent).

Mr Mchengerwa, who lauded the exercise during his brief press conference, said that 37 sub-villages did not hold elections. Eight of them didn’t participate in the exercise because their candidates died after appointment. They come from the municipal districts of Kilwa (2), Nanyumbu (1), Itilima (1), Ikungi (1), Manyoni (1), Uyui (1), and Mbarali (1).

Also, 29 sub-villages did not hold elections for various reasons. Twelve of them will repeat the election because the candidates received the same number of votes. Nine sub-villages will repeat the election after sole candidates fail to secure enough votes to form a government.

READ MORE: Reports of Violence, Fake Ballots Dominate Local Govt Elections Exercise in Tanzania

For members of village councils, CCM won 202,975, or 99 per cent, of all elections. It was followed by CHADEMA with 1,222 (0.53 per cent), ACT-Wazalendo 232 (0.1 per cent), CUF 105 (0.05 per cent), NCCR—Mageuzi 16 (0.01 per cent), Demokrasia Makini three (0.001 per cent), NLD and ADC, which won one election each.

CCM was also declared the winner in the elections of street council members, winning 21,148, or 99.30 per cent, of all elections held. CHADEMA came second with 101 elections (0.47 per cent), followed by ACT-Wazalendo 29 (0.14 per cent), CUF 16 (0.08 per cent), NCCR-Mageuzi two (0.01), and CCK and ADC, which won one election each.

Criticisms

Opposition parties CHADEMA and ACT-Wazalendo sharply criticised the manner in which the elections were held, pointing to several issues that prevented the exercise from being democratic and turned it into a “sham.” 

These include, but are not limited to, reports of violence associated with law enforcement authorities and CCM members against opposition members and candidates, leading to several deaths and injuries. (For more about this and other election irregularities, read our report here).

CHADEMA national chairperson Freeman Mbowe said in an X post on November 27 that the local government elections were a lost opportunity for Tanzanians to express their democratic will on who they want as their leaders, citing alleged murder and injuries of party members and candidates.

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“The nation once again witnesse[d] blatant and shameful misconduct by government authorities working collectively to shamelessly steal the election in favour of CCM and its candidates, even at the expense of Tanzanian lives,” Mr Mbowe wrote. “Indeed, our nation is in mourning yet again!”

CHADEMA announced that it will hold an extraordinary Central Committee meeting today, November 29, 2024, in Dar es Salaam. The meeting will deliberate on the events of the local government elections and decide on the appropriate next step.