Most Togolese lack confidence in the electoral commission and prefer an independent and technical alternative
Togo since August 2017 has been shaken by a new wave of protest from a coalition of opposition parties, the C14, for the constitutional, institutional and electoral reforms which should have led to not only legislative and local elections but also in the more consensual constitutional referendum (Togo Times, 2018). The success of this electoral marathon should have been partly conditioned by the confidence that the various actors have in the institutions intervening in the electoral process, in particular the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI). Thus, as one might expect, the battle for control of the CENI raged between the opposition coalition and the ruling movement (Atlantic Infos, 2018; Lemask, 2018; Deguenon, 2018; RFI, 2018a Togosite.com, 2018). This battle finally led to the boycott by the C14 of the CENI and the legislative elections of December 20, 2018 (RFI, 2018b; Digitalcongo.net, 2018). results and accusations of CENI bias (Vampouille, 2010; lemonde.fr, 2015; togotribune.com, 2018). A reputation which the CENI is struggling to get rid of and which can affect the confidence of citizens against it.
Declining trust in the electoral commission
Only one in four Togolese (26%) say they have “partial” or “a lot” of trust in the CENI, marking a drop from 37% in 2014. The proportion of citizens who say they trust “just a little” or “not at all” in the commission has increased by 12 percentage points since 2012, rising to 65%.
How free and transparent are the elections?
One element that could affect citizens' confidence in the independent national electoral commission is their assessment of whether the commission ensures free and transparent elections. In Togo, people's perceptions of recent elections have deteriorated in recent years. In 2017, only four in 10 respondents (40%) say that the last national elections (the 2015 presidential elections) were “completely free and transparent” or “free and transparent with minor issues”, marking a drop of 21 points from percentage compared to 61% who felt this way in 2014 compared to the 2013 parliamentary elections. Almost half (47%) of Togolese citizens now feel that the last national elections were “neither free nor free and transparent with major problems”
Support for a non-partisan and technical electoral commission
One way to improve the performance of the CENI could be to change its current configuration, and thus perhaps the quality of elections in Togo. Instead of a commission made up of 17 members representing parliamentary and extra-parliamentary political parties as well as civil society and the administration, the vast majority (73%) of Togolese say that a non-political and rather technical electoral commission would be more appropriate to organize the elections and announce the results. Regardless of how much confidence they have in the current CENI, at least two-thirds of Togolese say a non-partisan, technical commission would work better. Findings from Afrobarometer's most recent survey in Togo show that popular trust in the electoral commission is low, and even though citizens argue that elections are the best way to choose leaders, the perception that they have the quality of the elections dropped. Most Togolese – even those who trust the electoral commission – say an apolitical and rather technical electoral commission would work better.