Sierra Leone’s 2007 presidential and parliamentary elections were important milestones for the country’s political development, as these polls represented the first time that a democratically elected government was replaced by another democratically elected government. High numbers of Sierra Leonean voters turned out to cast ballots and their participation has been widely interpreted as a strong desire by Sierra Leoneans for peace and democratic governance. Hon. Ernest Bai Koroma of the All People’s Congress (APC) won the presidency in the September 8 run-off election and was sworn into office on September 17, just hours after official results were released by the National Electoral Commission (NEC).
The new parliament is the most diverse in Sierra Leone’s history. The All People’s Congress (APC) won 59 parliamentary seats; the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), the former ruling party, won 43 parliamentary seats; and the People’s Movement for Democratic Change (PMDC) won 10 seats. Sixteen Members of Parliament (MPs) are women, and one MP is disabled—the first person with a disability to be elected to office in Sierra Leone’s history. Twelve paramount chiefs were also nominated and elected by indirect ballot, bringing the total number of parliamentarians to 124.
International and domestic observers lauded the conduct of both the August 11 presidential and parliamentary elections and the September 8 run-off presidential election. Although heightened competition in the period around the presidential run-off brought to the fore regional and ethnic fault lines in Sierra Leonean politics, the elections were carried out peacefully. Following successful elections, Sierra Leoneans have high expectations for their new government and elected representatives.
NDI's Current Programming
Following national elections, NDI is continuing to work with local civil society partners (CSOs), the media, political parties, and other stakeholders in advance of local government elections scheduled for 2008. In preparation for local elections, NDI continues to work closely with national partners to develop voter education and media campaigns to increase citizen awareness and participation. NDI will provide training and financial resources to Sierra Leone’s independent media to help ensure that the electoral process is observed and reported on in a balanced manner. The Institute also continues to work with a coalition of domestic monitoring organizations, the National Election Watch (NEW), who will observe the local elections. NDI is working with Sierra Leonean political parties as they prepare for local elections, and will provide training for political party pollwatchers on their roles and responsibilities and the electoral procedures.
Following the 2007 legislative elections, NDI is conducting a coordinated orientation program for incoming Members of Parliament and legislative staff that aims to strengthen the capacity of the Parliament of Sierra Leone to serve as a democratic and responsive legislative body. As over eighty percent of Sierra Leone’s MPs are new to parliament and public office, the program assists MPs and staff to have a better understanding of the role of parliament, parliamentary processes and functions, executive oversight, constituency outreach, and the principles of accountability and representation.
Past Programming
Since launching its Sierra Leone program in 2001, NDI has worked with CSOs, Members of Parliament (MPs), political parties, the security sector, and other actors to strengthen civic participation and political institutions in post-conflict Sierra Leone. Through civic forums the Institute provided citizens at the grassroots level with the skills and knowledge they need to become politically active and to contribute effectively to the country’s democratic system. NDI has also implemented a country-wide program to increase and strengthen communication between MPs, local councilors, and constituents on priority issues and concerns in the districts. The Institute has also worked to increase the participation of women and youth in the political process as candidates for office and leaders of political parties and to strengthen the capacity of Sierra Leone civil society organizations to effectively monitor the electoral process.
During the August 2007 presidential and legislative elections, NDI worked with civil society, political parties, and other stakeholders to enhance the prospects for a transparent, peaceful, and free electoral process. Through its ongoing work with local CSO partners and election authorities, NDI continued its efforts to ensure that traditionally marginalized populations, including women, youth, and disabled persons, were included in the elections process and had equal access to the political process. As the second set of national elections since the signing of the Lomé Peace Accord that ended Sierra Leone's decade-long civil war approached, NDI incorporated peace-building and conflict prevention programming into its work with political parties and civil society organizations (CSOs).
In conjunction with election authorities, NDI supported political parties by providing technical assistance during the party registration process, training parties to monitor the polls, and ensuring compliance with the Code of Conduct. The Institute worked with all seven of Sierra Leone’s political parties to deploy party agents to polling stations across the country.
NDI provided technical and financial support to the National Elections Watch (NEW), a coalition of local civil society organizations who deployed observers to over 80 percent of polling stations and reported their findings through an innovative text messaging system. The Institute also conducted an international election observation program around Sierra Leone’s 2007 elections including pre-election assessment missions around the registration of voters and the campaign period, long-term observers based in each of the country’s four regions, and two election day delegations to observe polling in August and September.
NDI's programming in Sierra Leone is supported by the British Department for International Development (DFID) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Contact Information
For further information on our programs in Sierra Leone, please contact:
Washington, D.C.
Brett Lacy, Senior Program Officer Send Email
Sierra Leone
Honorine Muyoyeta, Country Director Send Email
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