Rwanda: Youth MP By-Election - 45 Candidates Cleared to Contest

17 August 2026
The New Times (Kigali)
By Charles Nyandwi

The National Electoral Commission (NEC) on Monday, August 17, released the provisional list of 45 approved candidates vying for the vacant youth representative seat in the Chamber of Deputies.

59 people had applied, and 14 of them were disqualified. Nine out of 12 female applicants were approved.

The 45 candidates are running to replace MP Venuste Icyitegetse, who resigned on June 11, citing personal reasons.

ALSO READ: NEC opens applications to fill youth MP seat

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Icyitegetse, 31, had been elected to the Chamber of Deputies in the July 2024 parliamentary elections.

The Commission published the provisional list following the verification of applications submitted between August 10 and 14.

Applicants were required to meet the eligibility conditions and submit the necessary documents, including a birth certificate, certificate of good conduct, criminal record certificate, medical certificate and a certificate of authenticity, among other requirements.

A table published by NEC shows that the applicants who did not meet the requirements had shortcomings in several areas.

Twelve applicants did not meet the requirement related to a certificate of good conduct, while two did not meet the requirement for a criminal record certificate. Two others were above the required age.

One applicant did not meet the requirement for a birth certificate, two had issues related to medical certificates and one did not meet the requirement related to the certificate of authenticity.

ALSO READ: MP Venuste Icyitegetse resigns

The number of shortcomings is higher than the 14 applicants who were disqualified because some applicants had more than one issue with their applications.

NEC opened applications for the vacant youth MP seat on August 10, giving interested Rwandan citizens until August 14 to submit their applications.

ALSO READ: Parliamentary elections: 28 submit candidatures on day one

The final list of approved candidates will be published on August 25, according to NEC.

The campaign period will then run ahead of the election on September 2, with provisional results expected on the same day final results due on September 9.

The vacant seat is one of two seats are reserved for youth representatives.

The successful candidate will serve the remainder of the current five-year parliamentary term, which began following the 2024 parliamentary elections.

Read the original article on New Times.

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