At stake in this election:

• 108 seats in the Senate

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Joseph KABILA *
• Head of Government: Prime Minister Antoine GIZENGA
• Assembly: Democratic Republic of the Congo has a bicameral legislature consisting of the National Assembly with 500 seats and the Senate with 108 seats.

* Joseph KABILA succeeded to the presidency following the assassination of his father, Laurent Desire KABILA, on 16 January 2001.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is elected by direct popular vote to serve a 5-year term.
• In the National Assembly, 61 members are elected by majority vote in single-member constituencies to serve 5-year terms and 439 members are elected by open list proportional representation in multi-member constituencies to serve 5-year terms. In the Senate 108 members are elected by indirect vote to serve 5-year terms.**

** The 108 members of the Senate are elected by indirect vote, by provincial deputies from within and outside the provincial Assembly, to serve 5-year terms.

Main parties in the electoral race:

• Party: People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD) / Parti du Peuple pour la Reconstruction et la Democratie*
  • Leader: Joseph KABILA
  • Seats won in this Senate election: 22
  • Seats won in last Senate election: 0
• Party: Movement for the Liberation of Congo (MLC) / Mouvement pour la Liberation du Congo
  • Leader: Jean-Pierre BEMBA
  • Seats won in this Senate election: 14
  • Seats won in last Senate election: 0
• Party: Forces for Renewal / Forces du Renouveau (FR)
  • Leader: Antipas Mbusa NYAMWISI
  • Seats won in this Senate election: 7
  • Seats won in last Senate election: 0
• Party: Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD) / Rassemblement Congloais pour la Democratie
  • Leader: Azarias RUBERWA
  • Seats won in this Senate election: 7
  • Seats won in last Senate election: 0
• Party: Christian Democrat Party (PDC) / Parti Democrate Chretien
  • Leader: Jose Endundo BONONGE
  • Seats won in this Senate election: 6
  • Seats won in last Senate election: 0
• Party: Social Movement for Renewal (MSR) / Mouvement Social pour le Renouveau
  • Leader: Pierre LUMBI
  • Seats won in this Senate election: 3
  • Seats won in last Senate election: 0
• Party: Unified Lumumbist Party (PALU) / Parti Lumumbist Unife
  • Leader: Antoine GIZENGA
  • Seats won in this Senate election: 2
  • Seats won in last Senate election: 0
• Party: Convention of Christian Democrats (CDC) / Convention des Democrates Chretiens
  • Leader: Flobentin Moronda BONZA
  • Seats won in this Senate election: 3
  • Seats won in last Senate election: 0

* Independents won 26 seats and 18 parties won 1 seat each in the 2007 senate election.

Population and registered voters:

• Population: 59,834,875 (2007)
• Registered voters: 25,421,249 (2006)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population:30,096,942 (2007)

·         Is Democratic Republic of the Congo a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980)

·         Has Democratic Republic of the Congo ratified CEDAW: Yes (17 October 1986)

·         Gender Quota: Yes

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 42 (National Assembly) (following 2006 elections); 5 (Senate) (following 2007 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 176 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Very High (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Democratic Republic of the Congo a signatory to CRPD: No

·         Has Democratic Republic of the Congo ratified CRPD: Yes, accession (30 September 2015)

·         Population with a disability: 8,975,231 (est.)