CENI Clears Twenty Parties, One Coalition, and Twelve Independents for 2025 Legislative Elections in Burundi

The National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI) has confirmed that 20 political parties, one coalition, and 12 independent candidates have successfully met the requirements to participate in Burundi’s upcoming 2025 legislative elections. The announcement was made on Friday during a meeting held with various electoral stakeholders, during which CENI President Prosper Ntahorwamiye provided an update on the preparations and outlined the next steps in the electoral process.

Ntahorwamiye reported that a total of 6,022,268 voters have been registered, including those living abroad and serving in peacekeeping missions. He highlighted key milestones already achieved, such as the submission of party logos, candidate dossiers, and the digitization of voter data, while also detailing forthcoming activities like the public display of voter and candidate lists and the accreditation of national and international observers.

Despite these updates, the meeting drew criticism from some opposition parties, as reported by local media. They accused the CENI of unwillingness to address irregularities in the candidate lists submitted for the communal council elections. For Olivier Nkurunziza, leader of the UPRONA party, the CENI should have given the candidates the opportunity to correct the errors that were found in the submissions, arguing that the CENI is the sole avenue for redress, making it imperative for the commission to ensure fairness.

Léopold Hakizimana, Secretary-general of CNL party, echoed similar concerns, urging the CENI to take cues from the Constitutional Court, which he praised for fostering fairness in the parliamentary elections. Hakizimana stressed the importance of creating a level playing field for communal elections, calling on the CENI to allow revisions to the submitted lists to ensure genuine competition.

In response, Ntahorwamiye explained that many of the issues arose from last-minute submissions by candidates, which left insufficient time for corrections as the appeal window had already closed. While acknowledging the intention to facilitate such corrections, he warned that implementing them could have caused procedural complications. He reminded political parties that their requests for adjustments were a matter of favor, not an entitlement.