Rwanda Election Showdown: Two Rivals Challenge Paul Kagame on July 15

The July 15th elections in Rwanda will give the citizens the opportunity to choose their next president and members of parliament.

The Rwanda National Electoral Commission recently announced the names of the candidates participating in these elections. Among them is Paul Kagame, who has been the president of Rwanda for the past 23 years and is the leader of the Rwandan Patriotic Front.

He will be competing against Frank Habineza from the opposition Democratic Green Party of Rwanda and Philippe Mpayimana, who is running as an independent candidate. In total, there are 9 candidates who have submitted their candidacy to the National Electoral Commission.

During the previous presidential poll, Habineza received less than 2% of the votes, while Kagame emerged as the winner with over 90% of the vote in the 2003, 2010, and 2017 elections.

However, critics and rights groups have accused Kagame of governing in an environment of fear that suppresses dissent and restricts freedom of speech.

It is worth noting that the Liberal Party (PL) and the Social Democratic Party (PSD) have endorsed Kagame as the candidate for the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF), joining four smaller political parties that are already in a coalition with the ruling RPF.