Voters in Benin begin casting ballots in legislative, local elections

RABAT, Jan 11 (KUNA) -- Voters in Benin began flocking to polling stations on Sunday to cast their ballots in a dual legislative and local election to choose 109 members of the National Assembly and 1,815 members of local councils, amid tight organizational and security measures.
Local media reported that polling stations opened at 7 am local time and are set to close at 5 pm, confirming that the electoral process is proceeding in a calm and orderly atmosphere across the country's various areas.
They added that "five parties are participating in the legislative elections, while competition in the local elections is limited to only three parties, within a political landscape characterized by a degree of consolidation and prior alliances." The organization of this dual election comes as part of a strategy adopted by Beninese authorities to hold simultaneous general elections ahead of the presidential election scheduled for April 12.
Benin's electoral law was amended in 2024, tightening the conditions for party participation. Under the amendment, any party that fails to obtain 20 percent of the votes in each of the 24 electoral constituencies is excluded, even if it achieves positive results at the national level.
This threshold is reduced to 10 percent for parties contesting the elections within coalitions, a choice adopted by all parties except the Democrats Party.
Under this latest legal amendment, members of the National Assembly are elected for a term of seven years instead of the previously applied five-year term, without specifying a limit on the number of terms a deputy may serve. (end) mry.onm