Tanzania’s electoral commission has disqualified opposition leader Luhaga Mpina from next month’s presidential race for the second time, intensifying fears of an uneven contest. Mpina, head of the Alliance for Change and Transparency (ACT-Wazalendo), the country’s second largest opposition party, had only recently won a court battle overturning his first disqualification. The commission’s fresh ruling reverses that victory, a move ACT-Wazalendo slammed as “baseless” and politically motivated.
The decision effectively clears the path for President Samia Suluhu Hassan, who assumed office in 2021 after the sudden death of President John Magufuli. With only smaller parties now left in the race, Hassan faces little serious challenge. Tanzania’s main opposition party, CHADEMA, was disqualified earlier this year after refusing to sign the electoral code of conduct in protest against what it calls an unfair system. Its leader, Tundu Lissu, has been jailed since April on treason charges he strongly denies.
Rights groups say the disqualifications, combined with Lissu’s detention and reports of harassment against journalists and activists, signal a wider crackdown ahead of the October vote. In June, United Nations human rights experts urged Tanzania to stop targeting political opponents, citing enforced disappearances, media restrictions, and intimidation of critics. Observers warn that the series of disqualifications has already undermined the credibility of the election, raising questions about whether Tanzanians will be able to freely choose their next leader.
