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Do you accept the Constitution of the Republic of Rwanda that was amended in 2015? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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A constitutional referendum was held in Rwanda on 18 December 2015. Rwandans living abroad voted on 17 December. [1] The amendments to the constitution would allow President Paul Kagame to run for a third term in office in 2017, as well as shortening presidential terms from seven to five years, although the latter change would not come into effect until 2024. [1] They were approved by around 98% of voters. [2]
A petition calling for Article 101 of the constitution (which imposes presidential term limits) to be amended gained over 3.7 million signatures, equivalent to over 60% of registered voters in Rwanda. [3] The constitutional amendments were approved by the Senate in November 2015. [1] If passed, they would allow Kagame to stand for a further two terms in office after 2024, [1] potentially allowing him to remain in power until 2034. [4] The opposition Democratic Green Party attempted to block the changes, but saw their bid to do so rejected in court. [5] The European Union and United States criticised the proposals, saying that it "undermines democratic principles". In response, Kagame criticised other countries for interfering in domestic affairs. [4]
Choice | Votes | % |
---|---|---|
For | 6,157,922 | 98.3 |
Against | 105,260 | 1.7 |
Invalid/blank votes | 22,171 | – |
Total | 6,285,353 | 100 |
Registered voters/turnout | 6,392,867 | 98.3 |
Source: NEC |
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