Crisis Chronology

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BENIN

06/06/2023

A new Constitutional Court in inaugurated. The main opposition party, Les Démocrates, has protested that the members do not include anyone from the opposition. Three of its seven judges were appointed by the president and four elected by the National Assembly.

01/13/2023

Ruling coalition reelected

The Progressive Union and the Republican Bloc together win 81 of the 109 seats in parliament. Turnout is reported to be 38%.

01/08/2023

Legislative elections. Opposition parties are participating in the elections. However, most of the opposition leaders are abroad, having been targeted by the government. There are 109 seats in the legislature, of which 24 are reserved for women. The main parties are the Bloc Républicain, President Talon's party, and Les Démocrates, former President Thomas Boni Yayi's party. Another party, the Progressive Union for Renewal, also supports President Talon. Islamic militant violence is increasing in the country, as in the rest of the Sahel.

01/08/2023

Results of the 1/8 election announced. President Talon’s supporters 81 of the 109 seats. The opposition Democrates won the remaining 28 seats. Turnout was 38%.

07/27/2022

Talon defends imprisonment of opposition figures, saying that they have committed crimes.

12/11/2021

The leader of the opposition, Reckya Madougou, is sentenced to twenty years in prison for attempting to initiate a string of assassinations of political figures.

12/07/2021

Opposition leader Joël Aïvo is sentenced to ten years in prison.

04/14/2021

Talon reelected

Electoral commission announces that Talon received 86% of the vote. Turnout was about 50%.

04/11/2021

Presidential election. President Patrice Talon is expected to win after opposition parties boycott election because of violence. Talon also reneged on his promise to serve only one term and has changed election laws to give him control of parliament. Most opposition figures are now exiled, disqualified, or under investigation.

03/08/2021

Reckya Madougou, leader of largest opposition party Les Dèmocrates, is arrested on charges of planning the assassination of political figures. Her candidacy for president for the election on 4/11 was rejected by the election commission for failing to gather enough signatures of MPs or mayors. The candidates other than President Patrice Talon are former minister Alassane Soumano and Corentin Kohoue, a dissident opposition figure. Sebastien Ajavon, opposition leader who came in third in the last election, was convicted of drug trafficking in 2018 and sentenced to 20 years in prison.

12/17/2020

Nigeria opens land borders with Benin although some goods are still restricted. Nigeria closed the borders in 8/19 in an attempt to control smuggling.

10/10/2020

Opponents and members of civil society in Benin have denounced the 2021 presidential election which they claim could be held without any credible opposition candidate and under questionable political circumstances orchestrated by the ruling government in light of an amendment to the electoral code and several court convictions against prominent opposition politicians.

10/10/2020

03/16/2020

Benin confirms its first case of COVID-19.

02/18/2020

Opposition leader Lionel Zinsou is banned from seeking office for four years.

02/17/2020

The FCBE party led by former president Boni Yayi is in crisis.

10/18/2019

Parliament says it will vote on electoral reform as soon as possible.

08/02/2019

Lionel Zinsou, former prime minister, runner-up in last presidential election and opposition leader is banned from politics for five years for using false documents. He is now living in France.

05/04/2019

Protests against the vote in economic hub, Cotonou.

04/30/2019

The Progressive Union, led by Bruno Amoussou, wins 56% of the vote, and the Republican Bloc, led by Jean-Michel Abimbola, 44%. Both are linked to President Talon.

04/28/2019

Election for the 83 deputies in parliament, though only two parties allied with the government were allowed to run candidates. The primary internet provider was shut down before the voting.

04/02/2019

Opposition and ruling party fail to agree on election laws, which may leave the opposition out of the upcoming election.

03/07/2019

Election commission bans several opposition parties after they fail to meet with Pres Talon to discuss the 4/28 elections.

02/19/2019

Opposition, led by former presidents Boni Yayi and Nicéphore Solgo, demands that Pres Patrice Talon rewrite election laws to make it easier to register as a candidate.

09/05/2018

Benin parliament adopts new electoral code. It raises the fee for a presidential candidacy from $26,000 to $440,000 (Benin dollars). The increase is seen as a way of reducing the number of political parties in Benin, now at about 200.