1946–47 Chadian General Council election

General Council elections were held in Chad on 15 December 1946, with a second round of voting on 12 January 1947.

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Background

The French Constituent Assembly elected in 1945 passed law 46.972 on 9 May 1946, creating a 36-member General Council for Chad. The Council would be elected by a single college by majority vote in one round. There would be two constituencies, each electing 18 seats. The southern constituency would cover Logone, Mayo-Kebbi and Moyen Chari, and a northern constituency covering the rest of the territory. However, the law was not promulgated in French Equatorial Africa.[1]

Shortly before the end of its mandate, the new Constituent Assembly elected in June 1946 passed law 46.2152 on 7 October 1946, which annulled law 46.972 and gave the provisional government the power to create representative assemblies by decree. This was duly used by Prime Minister Georges Bidault to issue decree 46.2374 on 25 October 1946, creating general councils for the territories of French Equatorial Africa.[1]

Electoral system

Decree 46.2374 provided for a 30-seat General Council, with a term of five years. Ten seats were elected by a First College consisting of French citizens with civil status and twenty by a Second College comprising citizens with personal status or those from areas under French administration (i.e. Cameroon and French Togoland).[1][2] The elections were held using the two-round system, with candidates required to receive a majority of the vote (and for their vote share to be higher than 25% of the registered electorate) to be elected in the first round. In the second round only a plurality was needed.[3]

Order 3267 on 18 November 1946 created the constituencies used, with seats allocated based on population rather than the number of registered voters:[3]

Constituency Prefectures Seats Electorate
First college
NorthBET, Ouaddaï, Salamat (minus Melfi)4224
South-WestRest of Chad6611
Second College
IBET, Kanem, Massakory24,292
IIOuaddaï43,669
IIIBatha, Salamat (minus Melfi)33,160
IVBongor, Fort Lamy, Chari-Baguirmi (minus Massakory), Melfi35,547
VLogone (minus Doba), Mayo-Kébbi (minus Bongor)54,781
VIDoba, Moyen-Chari36,470

Results

First College

In the North constituency all four seats were won in the first round by the Republican Union of Chad candidates, with the Union of Left Republicans candidates receiving between 58 and 62 votes. In the South-West constituency, two candidates from Albert Blanchard's Independent List were elected in the first round, forcing a second round of voting to decide the other four seats, with Blanchard himself failing to be elected in the first round. Blanchard's list was competing with a second independent list and the Republican Union of Chad. In the second round the best-placed candidate of the second independent list received only 79 votes.[4]

Constituency Candidate Party First round Second round Notes
Votes % Votes %
NorthEugène SabinRepublican Union of Chad79Elected
Joseph SchaeffertRepublican Union of Chad75Elected
William TardrewRepublican Union of Chad74Elected
Marcel LalliaRepublican Union of Chad73Elected
Union of Left Republicans58–62
South-WestLouis RichardIndependent List203Elected
Marcel VincentIndependent List191Elected
Albert BlanchardIndependent List168171Elected
Jean AnceauIndependent List153164Elected
LaïdetIndependent List145
Antoine LaubieIndependent List133150
MartelIndependent List––155Elected
André KiefferRepublican Union of Chad163170Elected
Valid votes50098.04376100
Invalid/blank votes101.9600.00
Total votes510100376100
Registered voters/turnout83561.0861161.54
Source: Lanne

Second College

In the Second College, electoral manipulation by the French authorities resulted in conservative candidates winning 13 of the 20 seats.[2] The African Democratic Bloc of Ouaddaï (BADO) filed a complaint, which led to an official inspection. Although the report found a disproportionately high voter turnout in the district of Biltine, Chad and that BADO had obtained the majority of votes in Abéché, the result was not overturned.[5]

Party Votes % Seats
Chadian-French Progressive List4,82431.127
Progressive and Republican Union of Chad3,66323.546
Republican Union2,59816.704
List of Independents1,68110.803
Communist List1,0786.930
Franco-Chadian Progressive Group1,0106.490
African Democratic Bloc of Ouaddaï3762.420
Independent List3112.000
Invalid/blank votes110––
Total15,66910020
Registered voters/turnout27,91956.12–
Source: Lanne

Elected MPs
Constituency Elected member Party
First College
NorthEugène SabinRepublican Union of Chad
Joseph SchaeffertRepublican Union of Chad
William TardrewRepublican Union of Chad
Marcel LalliaRepublican Union of Chad
South-WestLouis RichardList of Independents
Marcel VincentIndependent List
Albert BlanchardIndependent List
Jean AnceauIndependent List
MartelIndependent List
André KiefferRepublican Union of Chad
Second College
IAlifa ZezertiChadian-French Progressive List
Mohamed Bechir-SowChadian-French Progressive List
IIHenri MontchampRepublican Union
Baroud Adoum MahamatRepublican Union
Abderrahman DialloRepublican Union
Brahim MoustafaRepublican Union
IIIArabi el GoniList of Independents
Adoum AganayeList of Independents
Kadre AlioList of Independents
IVMarcel TournadeProgressive and Republican Union of Chad
Ibrahim BabikirProgressive and Republican Union of Chad
N'Daw AliouneProgressive and Republican Union of Chad
VOuaïdouChadian-French Progressive List
Tobio dit MarkinzayeChadian-French Progressive List
Gontchomé SahoulbaChadian-French Progressive List
Paul NodjoudouChadian-French Progressive List
René ManguetChadian-French Progressive List
VIToura GabaProgressive and Republican Union of Chad
Marc DouniaProgressive and Republican Union of Chad
Kodebri NaguéProgressive and Republican Union of Chad

Aftermath

Following the elections, three distinct political groups emerged in the Second College; members of the Chadian-French Progressive List (7 seats), Republican Union (four seats) and Franco-Chadian Progressive Group (unrepresented) formed the Chadian Democratic Union (UDT). A group which later became the Chadian Progressive Party (PPT) was formed by the Progressive and Republican Union of Chad (six seats), BADO and the Communist list (both unrepresented). The third group was made up of the three independents; Adoum Aganaye joined the PPT, whilst Kadre Alio and Arabi el Goni joined the UDT, giving the UDT thirteen seats and the PPT seven.[5]

The General Council met for the first time on 30 January 1947 at 8am, when its first session was opened by Governoer Jacques Rogué.[6]

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References
  1. Bernard Lanne (1998) Histoire politique du Tchad de 1945 à 1958: administration, partis, élections, KARTHALA Editions, p98
  2. Dolf Sternberger, Bernhard Vogel, Dieter Nohlen & Klaus Landfried (1978) Die Wahl der Parlamente: Band II: Afrika, Erster Halbband, pp2219–2220 (in German)
  3. Lanne, p99
  4. Lanne, pp104–105
  5. Lanne, p102
  6. Lanne, p106
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