Chad is holding its first parliamentary elections in a decade today, but they are being held under the shadow of an opposition boycott, Reuters and BTA reported.
The elections are a key step in a three-year transition to constitutional rule led by President Mahamat Idriss Deby, who took office after the death of his father, Idriss Deby, in 2021.
President Mahamat Deby, who was elected in May this year, is expected to consolidate his power through a new National Assembly. Opposition leaders, including Souxe Masra, have criticized the election process, saying it does not offer a truly democratic choice.
Election day will run from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time, with preliminary results due by January 15 and final results by the end of the month.
Outside the elections, Chad remains a key Western ally in the fight against terrorism in the Sahel, although relations with France have soured since the country ended its military cooperation agreement with the former colonial power.
Chad also continues to bear a significant burden on the humanitarian front, hosting more than 600,000 refugees fleeing ongoing conflicts in neighboring Sudan.