At Stake in this Election: 

On 17 December 2023, Chad will hold a referendum to replace the 2018 constitution with a new one proposed as part of the transition back to civilian rule.  

The referendum question is: Do you approve of the draft Constitution submitted to you, enshrining the unitary form of the State? 

Response options are “Yes” or “No”.

Government Structure:  

• Chief of State: President Mahamat Idriss DÉBY (since 20 April 2021) 

• Head of Government: Prime Minister Albert Pahimi PADACKE (since 26 April 2021) 

• Assembly: unicameral National Transitional Council (Conseil National de Transition) with 93 members 

Electoral System:  

• Chad is currently controlled by a Transitional Military Council rather than elected officials. Members of the National Transitional Council were appointed by the President. 

New/Unique in this Election:  

This is the first referendum to be held in Chad.  

Population and Registered Voters: 

• Population: 17,723,310 (2022 est.) 

• Registered Voters: 8,237,768 (2023) 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population: 8,827,310 (2022 est.) 

• CEDAW Status: Ratified (by accession) 1995 

• Gender Quota: No 

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 51 out of 197 (25.9%) in the National Assembly (from last direct election in 2021) 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.394, Low, Rank 190 (2021)  

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: 45 (2023) 

Disability Data: 

• CRPD Status: Signed 2012, Ratified 2019 

• Projected population with a disability: 2,835,730 (2022 est.) 

IFES Resources: 

• Does IFES have a presence in Chad: No 

• Election Access: Yes 

• Election Judgements: Yes, 2 judgments and 5 resources  

Referendum Text in French 

Question: “Approuvez-vous le projet de Constitution qui vous est soumis consacrant la forme unitaire de l’État?” 

Responses: “Oui” (Yes) or “Non” (No)