The National Electoral Commission (NEC) is set to organize a by-election for one Member of Parliament to replace Venuste Icyitegetse. He resigned from his duties for personal reasons, as confirmed by the Chamber of Deputies.
The National Electoral Commission has 90 days to prepare these elections. This is in accordance with Article 90 of Organic Law n° 002/2026.OL of 25/05/2026 governing elections.
” (1) Where a Deputy not appearing on the list of any political organisation or coalition of political organisations vacates his or her
seat, and the remainder of his or her term of office exceeds one year, the Commission, upon being notified thereof by the Speaker
of the Chamber of Deputies, organises an election to fill the vacancy within 90 days from the date of such notification.
(2) The elected Deputy serves for the remainder of the term of office of his or her predecessor.”
The resigned MP, Venuste Icyitegetse, represented the youth. He entered the Chamber of Deputies after the 2024 general elections, elected by the youth. The law stipulates that if an MP resigns with more than a year left on their term, and they do not come from a political party or a coalition of political parties, a new election is held to replace them.
The new organic law mentioned above stipulates that the President of the Republic determines the electoral college for the MP representing the youth. This means that this decree must be issued soon to confirm the electoral college, allowing candidates time to campaign to them.
This is not the first time a youth representative MP has resigned. In the previous parliamentary term, Mr. Ernest Kamanzi, who also represented the youth, resigned for personal reasons. However, this is the first time a by-election will be held to replace a resigned MP, because when Kamanzi resigned, the remaining time on his term did not legally allow for a replacement.
Other MPs who have resigned in the past usually came from political parties. They were replaced using the candidate lists that their respective parties submitted during the general elections.
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