Presidential Election Results

* Withdrew from election but still garnered vote as name was still published on ballot.

Introduction

The inception of a Togolese republic in 1961 was preceded by a turbulent history, which first gained prominence through the region being a major European raiding centre in the search for slaves. What was commonly known as "The Slave Coast" became a German protectorate, in 1884, after the abolishment of slavery some 20 years earlier. Owing to the region being its only self-supporting colony, Germany began to extend its control of the territory further inland.

With the advent of the First World War, in 1914, Togoland was invaded by British and French forces and, subsequently, became a League of Nations mandate territory that was divided up between Britain and France for administrative purposes. Following the Second World War, and the fall of the League of Nations, the status of the territory changed to become a United Nations (UN) trusteeship territory still administered by Britain and France. In 1957, British-administered West Togoland voted to separate from the trusteeship and created the independent nation of Ghana. French Togo thereafter became an autonomous republic, however, it still retained its UN trusteeship status.

Events moved quickly after the granting of republic status and a constitution was drafted that made provision for a Legislative Assembly and an Executive Prime Minister to head up the Assembly. The constitution was approved in a referendum that culminated in an unsupervised general election in 1958, which saw Sylvanus Olympio become Togo's first President. On April 27, 1960, the West African country cut ties with France, shed its UN trusteeship status and became fully independent under a provisional constitution.

Post Independence

A new constitution was drafted in 1961, which created a powerful executive president with the ability to appoint ministers and dissolve the National Assembly, thus holding a monopoly on power. In elections held the same year, Olympio won 90% of the vote and effectively became the first Togolese President after the drafting of the new constitution.

Olympio's short reign of power, which ended with his assassination in 1963, is characterised by a centralisation of power with the dissolving of opposition parties and a number of policies that effectively made Togo a single party State. A number of opposition figures, including Nicolas Grunitzky, the leader of the opposition, fled the country to avoid arrest.

Following Olympio's assassination, Grunitzky returned to head a provisional government as Prime Minister. Under Grunitzky's leadership, a new constitution was drafted that made provision for a multiparty democracy and fresh general elections. Consequently, Grunitzky was elected President and an all-inclusive government, in which all Togolese parties were represented, was formed.

Eyadéma and the Third Republic

From the moment Grunitzky achieved power, his administration began to weaken and became very insecure. With a growing civilian opposition to his policies, he attempted to distance himself from the army, which he relied on heavily for support. This move ultimately resulted in a bloodless military coup in 1967, with General Gnassingbé Eyadéma, ousting President Grunitzky. The coup meant that Eyadéma assumed the Presidency, banned political parties and suspended all constitutional processes.

In 1969, Eyadéma created a single national political party known as The Rally of the Togolese People (RPT), of which he became party president. One of Eyadéma's first moves in the party was to hold a national referendum on who should run the county. Eyadéma ran unopposed and considered this a legitimate mandate to confirm his Presidency.

With growing opposition amongst civilian ranks, Eyadéma declared a third Togolese Republic in 1979. The reforms meant a transition to increased civilian participation in government with a mixed military and civilian cabinet. A new constitution was drafted that remodelled the legislature to act more as a consultative body to the Presidency.

In late 1979, Eyadéma won an uncontested election. Further, the incumbent President extended his rule in 1986, when he won a third consecutive unopposed election to guarantee himself another seven-year term.

Post Cold War Togo

In the early 1990's, spurred by the fall of the Soviet Union, protests began to sweep the country calling for democratic reform. On October 5, 1990, a group of antigovernment students sparked protests in the capital Lomé, which led to violent clashes with armed forces. This was the pattern of political opposition and protest throughout the following months. As a result, the government agreed to negotiate with opposition groups and agreed to grant amnesty to political exiles. With further strikes and demonstrations against the State, the opposing factions agreed to hold a "national forum" in 1991, to discuss their differences.

Results of the national forum led to the drafting of an interim constitution that called for a one-year transitional government prior to elections being held to form a new government. The interim government turned out to be an arena for power struggles mainly between President Eyadéma and opposition leaders included in the interim government, which often led to political paralysis and intermittent violence between opposition groups supporters. Following a vote to dissolve the President's party (the RPT), the army attacked the Prime Minister's office in late 1991. Consequently, a second transition government was formed, which included a considerable number of RPT members.

In mid-1992, a commission comprising the two rival factions approved a new political agreement that made way for a new democratic constitution, thus paving the way for Togo's fourth republic.

The Fourth Republic

Togo's fourth republic was characterised by a period of political unrest in a situation that was polarised between a government faction and an opposition faction. The rivalry between the two sides at times grew violent, and more importantly, paralysed any form of effective governance to deal with the range of socioeconomic problems facing the country.

These tensions were played out during the early stages of 1993, in which violence between the military-backed government and civilian opposition bordered on civil war. The violence led to an attempt on Eyadéma's life, as well as the displacement of 300 000 Togolese civilians to neighbouring Benin or the country's interior.

Owing to growing domestic and international pressure, the Presidential faction and the opposition entered into negotiations in 1993. The talks led to the adoption of the Ouagadougou agreement that laid out conditions for upcoming presidential and legislative elections. The elections took place on August 3, 1993, but were marred, however, by controversy, as a number of big opposition politicians dropped out of the Presidential race citing an inadequate campaigning period. The subsequent boycott meant that Eyadéma won 96,42% of the vote with only 36% of the electorate participating.

Continued Unrest

For the next decade Togo encountered continual barriers to the democratic process. For what had characterised the beginning stages of the Fourth Republic continued up until Eyadéma's death in 2005. Despite certain democratic concessions granted to the opposition, the period can be described as one of political manoeuvring and electoral manipulation that allowed Eyadéma to retain power for a long as he did - to the opposition's dismay.

As a result, the opposition continued to protest for equal representation in government that played out on the streets of Lomé, with military and civilians violently clashing on a number of occasions. One of the great points of dispute between government and the opposition was the appointment of the Prime Minister. While President Eyadéma would more than once appoint his only ally as Prime Minister, the opposition would boycott the government, forcing renewed negotiations and subsequently new elections. This was a common cycle in Togolese politics, which amplified how fickle the country's constitutional democracy really was.

Faure Gnassingbé

The death of Eyadéma in 2005, led to the unconstitutional move by the military leadership which swore in Faure Gnassingbé, the late President's son, as the country's new President. Widespread domestic and regional condemnation followed from organisations, such as the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States. Pressure from these units and mass protest in the capital of Lomé eventually led to Gnassingbé stepping down, with Abass Bonfoh, the Parliamentary speaker, filling the role as acting President.

Gnassingbé, however, was elected as the RPT party head and subsequently ran for the presidential post in the April 2005 elections. The elections, however, were shrouded in controversy with widespread accusation of State violence and intimidation, which caused thousands of Togolese to flee to Benin and Ghana, as well as violent clashes between opposition groups. Gnassingbé was pronounced the winner of the election to widespread condemnation, particularly from the European Union, which urged Gnassingbé to create a government of national unity, including members of the opposition. Negotiations broke down, however, and Gnassingbé went ahead and formed a government of his own, which excluded important representatives from opposition parties.

The Global Political Agreement

In August 2006, Gnassingbé agreed to a meeting with opposition, which led to the end of the political crisis that had reigned since Eyadéma's death in 2005, with the signing of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) by the two factions. The terms of the GPA made provision for another unity government with the aim of creating a suitable environment for legislative elections to take place. The government comprised the most substantial political parties in the country, however, Gilchrist Olympio, of the Union of Forces for Change (UFC), declined to join the government. Olympio did, however, agree to participate in the national electoral commission, as well as the National Dialogue follow-up committee, chaired by the President of Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaore.

The legislative elections took place on October 14, 2007, and were declared free and fair by international and domestic observers. The RPT won a majority with 50 seats, the UFC took 27 and the Action Committee for Renewal (CAR) won the remaining four. Gnassingbé proceeded to announce a Cabinet drawn mainly from the RPT and lesser parties, rendering the other two parties within the National Assembly without representation within Cabinet. With the resignation of the Prime Minister, Komlan Mally, in 2008, additional ministries were created to accommodate representatives from the UFC and the CAR.

Upcoming Elections

The build-up to the imminent Presidential poll has not been free of controversy. The originally scheduled February 28 poll has been pushed back to March 4, following a request from the opposition, as a result of tension regarding candidate lists between different parties. Further, of the candidates running for the Presidency, several have withdrawn or been declared invalid.

Brigitte Kafui Adjamagbo-Johnson of the Democratic Convention of African Peoples (CDPA), the first Togolese woman to contest the presidential election, has since withdrawn from the process over fears that it will produce a rigged result. Two other opposition candidates have followed suite. Further, the Togolese Constitutional Court has ruled the candidacy of Kofi Yamgnane invalid, owing to discrepancies in his birth date regarding his dual citizenship of Togo and France.

Gnassingbé, therefore, remains the frontrunner for the RPT, with six other candidates contesting the post of the country's President.

The country's main opposition party, the UFC, has also pulled out of the commission entrusted to organise elections in the country, calling the electoral process a "masquerade", citing an inadequate population census and irregularities in the drawing up of electoral rolls. The withdrawal of the party from the commission, which has nominated Gilchrist Olympio as its Presidential candidate, casts doubt on the credibility of the upcoming elections.

Political Outlook

In a country where elections are typically followed by widespread violence, Togo faces the challenge of conducting free and fair elections, which will lead to a legitimate government elected by the people. A democratic culture starts with the election of a democratic government. With the many setbacks experienced by the West African country, the incoming President faces the challenge of unifying political factions and consolidating the democratic foundation to create a long and lasting tradition of good governance and effective leadership.

With a deteriorating economy, the focus should be on creating a stable government to establish a steady economy and lift the country out of poverty. With Lomé's strategic location, owing to its feeding of inland States, such as Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, political instability over the last few decades has led to the capital city not fulfilling its economic potential as a regional trading centre. Further, with rising debt, it is imperative for Togo to create the environment to encourage and reinvigorate trade with its trading partners, specifically the European Union and China.

It is, therefore, vitally important for Togo to create stable democratic institutions and government to stimulate economic growth. The upcoming elections will be a great challenge to see whether the country can become a hub of economic prosperity.

Main Sources

France24. Togolese Presidential election postponed. (February 12, 2010).
IPS. Politics Togo: First Female Presidential Candidate. (February 17, 2010).
SAPA. Togo's Poll big test for Legitimacy: President. (February 16, 2010).
SAPA. Opposition Party quits Togo Election Body. (February 15, 2010).
US Department of State. Background Note: Togo. (February 10, 2010).
Afrque en ligne. Former French Minister to run for Togo 2010 presidential election. (February 7, 2010).
Africa Press International. Olympio gets elected by the largest opposition party in Togo as 2010 presidential candidate. (February 15, 2010).
African Elections Database. Elections in Togo. (February 10, 2010).