Burundi: Parliamentary and presidential results 2005
Updated August 2005
Presidential results
The former chief rebel Pierre Nkurunziza was elected as President of the Republic, by parliament on August 19, 2005, for a five year term. Nkurunziza won 151 out of 162 votes (91.52% of the ballots) in the first round. While the win was expected (Nkurunziza being the only candidate), the score and the first-round success were not foreseen. His CNDD-FDD (Forces for the Defence of Democracy) party does not have the required 2/3 majority in the Parliament and the Electoral Law does not put a limit to the number of rounds for the candidate to be declared winner. Theoretically, there could have been 'n' rounds till a candidate obtained the 2/3 majority.
After the expiry of Nkurunziza's term presidents of Burundi will not be elected by parliament, but directly by the electorate.
Parliamentary results
These are the final results of the legislative election that took place on July 4, 2005. Voter turnout was 76.63%.
Joseph Topangu, EISA's country director in Burundi, reported: "Following the publication [of the results] the Head of State (who is from FRODEBU) and the main political parties have made declarations recognizing the CNDD-FDD's victory. CNDD spokesperson Karenga Ramadhani said that his party 'will work with all' to consolidate peace, and that CNDD is prepared to negotiate with FNL in order to bring definitive peace. The Chairman of FNL Agathon Rwasa also said that his group is prepared to talk to the new government".
| Party | Votes | % Votes | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conseil National pour la Défense de la Démocratie-Forces pour la Défense de la Démocratie (CNDD-FDD) | 1 410 244 | 58.30 | 59 |
| Front pour la Démocratie au Burundi (FRODEBU) | 524 238 | 21.68 | 24 |
| Unite pour le Progrès National (UPRONA) | 173 438 | 7.13 | 10 |
| Conseil National pour la Défense de la Démocratie (CNDD) | 106 911 | 4.42 | 5 |
| Mouvement pour la Réhabilitation du Citoyen-Rurenzangemero (MRC-Rurenzangemero) | 51 851 | 2.14 | 2 |
| Others | 152 280 | 6.33 | 0 |
| Total | 2 418 962 | 100.04 | 100 |
Note: The Electoral Law requires a minimum of 2% nationwide for a political party to enter the National Assembly. "Others" in the table, refers to those parties that failed to obtain that minimum.
Source
COMMISSION ELECTORALE NATIONALE INDEPENDANTE July 6, 2005.