With Tanzania’s election campaign reaching its final day on Monday, opposition candidate Salum Mwalimu closed his campaign with a large rally, positioning himself as the leading challenger to President Samia Suluhu Hassan in a race clouded by the exclusion of key rivals and an escalating government clampdown.
Due to the disqualification and imprisonment of several notable opposition figures, Mwalimu, representing the CHAUMMA party, has effectively become the primary opponent to the long-dominant Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party.
At his final rally in Dar es Salaam, Mwalimu delivered energetic speeches urging voters to reject what he described as the “poverty” and “unemployment” caused by CCM’s leadership.
Despite this momentum, he is only one of 16 candidates running against President Hassan, though critics point out that many candidates on the ballot have hardly campaigned at all.
CCM has ruled Tanzania, under different political structures, since the country gained independence in 1961.
It remains one of the few former liberation movements in Africa still holding onto power, even as economic challenges persist and younger Tanzanians demand real reform.
The pre-election period has been overshadowed by what Amnesty International describes as a “climate of fear,” with a growing number of opposition members, journalists, and civil society groups facing arrests and intimidation.
Key opposition figure Tundu Lissu is currently jailed on treason charges, and his deputy was recently arrested, further weakening the opposition’s ability to mobilize voters.
Amid frustration, low voter turnout is expected, and there are rising fears of possible unrest after the opposition urged citizens to protest on election day
