Tanzania’s President Samia Suluhu Hassan has been declared the winner of Tanzania’s presidential election, claiming a landslide victory as unrest and allegations of fraud sweep across the country.
The National Electoral Commission announced on Saturday that Samia, of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, secured 97.66% of the vote, or about 31.9 million ballots, in Wednesday’s election. Voter turnout reached nearly 87% of the country’s 37.6 million registered voters.
“I hereby announce Samia Suluhu Hassan as the winner of the presidential election under the CCM party,” said electoral chief Jacobs Mwambegele while declaring the results.
The outcome extends the ruling party’s decades-long dominance. CCM and its predecessor, TANU, have governed Tanzania uninterrupted since independence.
Violence and Internet Shutdown
The election was overshadowed by widespread unrest and a nationwide internet blackout, which has made it difficult to verify reports of casualties. Opposition figures and civil society groups allege that hundreds of people have been killed in clashes with security forces since polling day.
A spokesperson for the opposition Chadema party told AFP that “around 700” people had been killed, while a diplomatic source cited by the BBC estimated at least 500 deaths.
Authorities have downplayed the scale of the violence, describing the unrest as “isolated incidents.” Foreign Minister Mahmoud Kombo Thabit said security forces had acted “swiftly and decisively.”
A curfew remains in place, and soldiers continue to man checkpoints in the commercial capital, Dar es Salaam, where tensions are high despite a lull in protests on Saturday morning. Demonstrations earlier in the week saw protesters tear down Samia’s posters and attack polling stations.
Opposition Claims Fraud
In Zanzibar, which has its own government and president, CCM’s Hussein Mwinyi won re-election with nearly 80% of the vote. Opposition groups in the archipelago described the process as marked by “massive fraud,” according to the Associated Press.
Nationwide, opposition leaders accuse the government of undermining democracy by jailing or disqualifying key challengers. Tundu Lissu, Chadema’s candidate, remains detained on treason charges he denies, while Luhaga Mpina of the ACT-Wazalendo party was barred from running due to legal technicalities.
Only sixteen minor parties—none with significant public support—were permitted to participate.
International Concern
The United Nations and several Western governments have voiced alarm over the situation. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply concerned” about reports of deaths and injuries and urged all sides to prevent further escalation.
The UK, Canada, and Norway issued a joint statement expressing “serious concern” over “credible reports of large numbers of fatalities and significant injuries resulting from the security response to protests.”
A Contested Legacy
Rights groups, including Amnesty International, had warned before the vote of a “wave of terror” involving disappearances, torture, and extrajudicial killings of opposition figures. The government dismissed those claims, insisting the election was free and fair.
Samia, who became Tanzania’s first female president in 2021 following the death of John Magufuli, now faces mounting international pressure and domestic unrest as she begins another term.
