Crisis Chronology

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TOGO

11/28/2023

Government says it will hold elections no later than the end of 3/24, although President Gnassingbé had promised elections in 12/23 in his presidential address in 2022.

09/07/2022

Government extends state of emergency in the north, the Savanes region, for six months to continue to fight jihadist groups, which seem to be moving west in the Sahel.

06/13/2022

Government declares “state of security emergency” in the north to allow military to be more flexible.

04/22/2022

Parliament approves a motion asking the government to apply to become a member of the Commonwealth. Togo is already a member of ECOWAS and La Francophone.

10/07/2020

Decentralization plans moving slowly. Although mayors are now elected locally rather than being selected by the central government, they lack adequate support from the government.

09/28/2020

Victoire Tomegah Dogbé is named prime minister, the first woman to hold the office in Togo.

04/21/2020

Opposition leader Agbéyomé Kodjo is arrested, accused of avoiding previous summonses. In mid-March, Kodjo’s parliamentary immunity was because the public prosecutor’s office accused him of proclaiming himself president.

02/22/2020

Gnassingbé re-elected

Gnassingbé is easily re-elected with 72% of the vote.

02/22/2020

Presidential election. Gnassingbé will be re-elected easily. Many opposition parties are calling for a boycott of the vote, though six other candidates are running including Jean-Pierre Fabre of the National Alliance for Change (ANC) and former prime minister Agbéyomé Kodjo. The opposition coalition known as C14 broke up after failing to stop the constitutional amendments allowing Gnassingbé to run again. In the past week, hundreds of election observers lost their accreditation, accused of interfering with the electoral process.

01/09/2020

Jean-Pierre Fabre of the Alliance for Change (ANC) is likely opposition presidential candidate.

01/07/2020

Pres Faure Gnassingbé elected candidate of the ruling Union for the Republic (UNIR), for 2/22 presidential election.

07/06/2019

Ruling Union for the Republic (UNIR) party wins 60% of local offices.

12/20/2018

Legislative elections. The voting was boycotted by fourteen opposition parties. The governing Union for the Republic wins overwhelmingly, although it loses a few seats of its majority, dropping to 59 of 91.

12/10/2018

Protests subside.

12/09/2018

At least two are killed when security forces repress protests in the capital, Lome, and other cities around the country. Gnassingbe has banned all protests, but an opposition coalition of fourteen parties has planned more protests before the parliamentary elections on 12/20.

09/21/2018

Election commission announces that local elections will be held 12/16/18 and legislative elections on 12/20.

09/21/2018

Election commission announces that local elections and a constitutional referendum will be held 12/16/18 and legislative elections on 12/20. The referendum, demanded by the opposition, would limit the president to two terms, to be applied retroactively, which would end Gnassingbe’s presidency. It would also introduce a two-round voting system.

04/25/2018

French court charges that Groupe Bollore, owned by billionaire Vincent Bollore, gave financial concessions to the campaigns of Alpha Conde of Guinea and Faure Gnassingbe in return for business concessions.

02/21/2018

Togo opposition halts protests as mediation led by Ghana Pres Akufo-Addo shows progress in release of some prisoners and judicial review of others’ cases. Next round of talks is 2/23.

11/29/2017

Togo opposition vows to continue protests despite promise of discussions.

11/20/2017

Pres Gnassingbé promises dialogue with Togo opposition in a few weeks. Demonstrations continue.

11/02/2017

After discussions with political civil society leaders, Togo lifts ban on weekday protests. Neutral parties will monitor the protests and plainclothes police will be barred.