Benin politics can be measured through election participation, parliamentary composition, representation, and governance indicators. The figures below cover national elections from 1999 through 2026, the National Assembly elected in January 2023, Freedom House assessments for 2024 and 2025, and World Bank governance estimates for 2023.
On this page
- Election participation
- The 2023 National Assembly election
- Parliamentary structure and representation
- Women in the National Assembly
- Political rights and civil liberties
- World Bank governance indicators
Election participation
Benin’s recent election statistics show different participation levels across legislative and presidential contests. The 2026 National Assembly election recorded 2,878,726 cast votes from 7,834,608 registered voters, producing turnout of 36.74%. These figures are identified by the IFES Election Guide.
The January 2023 National Assembly election recorded 2,558,446 cast votes. Of those, 2,477,908 were valid and 80,538 were invalid. The election had 6,769,817 registered voters, and turnout was 37.79%, according to the IFES Election Guide.
For comparison, Benin’s 2019 National Assembly election recorded 1,147,625 votes cast from 4,992,399 registered voters, with turnout of 22.99%. The 2015 National Assembly election recorded 2,946,042 votes cast from 4,470,000 registered voters, with turnout of 65.91%. The 2007 contest recorded 2,312,534 votes cast from 3,919,550 registered voters, with turnout of 59.0%. The 2003 election recorded 1,724,093 votes cast from 3,084,442 registered voters, with turnout of 55.9%. The 1999 election recorded 1,894,994 votes cast from 2,769,323 registered voters, with turnout of 68.43%. All of these legislative figures are reported by the IFES Election Guide.
| Election | Votes cast | Registered voters | Turnout |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 National Assembly | 2,878,726 | 7,834,608 | 36.74% |
| 2023 National Assembly | 2,558,446 | 6,769,817 | 37.79% |
| 2019 National Assembly | 1,147,625 | 4,992,399 | 22.99% |
| 2015 National Assembly | 2,946,042 | 4,470,000 | 65.91% |
| 2007 National Assembly | 2,312,534 | 3,919,550 | 59.0% |
| 1999 National Assembly | 1,894,994 | 2,769,323 | 68.43% |
Presidential elections in the same source show higher participation in several earlier contests. The 2021 presidential election recorded 2,431,414 votes cast from 4,802,303 registered voters, with turnout of 50.63%. In 2016, the first round recorded 3,010,888 votes cast and turnout of 64.03%; the second round recorded 3,082,998 votes cast from 4,702,168 registered voters, with turnout of 65.57%. In 2011, 3,111,833 votes were cast from 3,668,558 registered voters, and turnout was 84.82%.
The 2001 presidential first round recorded 1,707,604 votes cast from 3,152,365 registered voters, with turnout of 54.17%. Its second round recorded 2,662,595 votes cast from 3,034,471 registered voters, with turnout of 87.74%. The IFES Election Guide reports that the 2016 and 2001 presidential figures refer to the specified round rather than to a single combined election total.
The 2023 National Assembly election
All 109 National Assembly seats were at stake in the January 2023 legislative election. The Progressive Union won 53 seats, the Republican Bloc won 28, and the Democrats won 28, according to the IFES Election Guide. The same source reports that the Progressive Union gained 6 seats compared with the prior election, while the Republican Bloc changed by -8 seats.
The three parties’ reported vote totals and shares were different from their seat totals. The Progressive Union received 930,714 votes, or 37.56% of the vote. The Republican Bloc received 724,240 votes, or 29.23%. The Democrats received 598,560 votes, or 24.16%. Together, the three reported vote totals were 2,253,514, while the election recorded 2,477,908 valid votes. The party figures and the valid-vote total are reported by the IFES Election Guide.
The 2023 election was the first legislative election held under Benin’s 2019 Electoral Code, according to IPU Parline. Under that code, the statutory size of the National Assembly increased from 83 to 109 seats. The election therefore combined a larger chamber with a new allocation that included women-only seats.
The Assemblée nationale du Bénin reports that the Assembly elected its president in February 2023 with 109 votes for and 0 against. The 9th legislature was divided into 3 parliamentary groups and had 5 permanent committees in 2023. A 2024 plenary session recorded 83 deputies present out of 109, also reported by the Assembly.
Parliamentary structure and representation
Benin’s National Assembly has 109 members, according to the IFES Election Guide. Members are elected in 24 multi-member constituencies and serve five-year terms. The legislature has a three-term limit for National Assembly members.
The presidency is elected in a two-round majority system. The presidential term is five years, and the presidency has a two-term limit. These institutional rules are reported by the IFES Election Guide. The two-round structure is visible in the 2001 and 2016 presidential election statistics, where the source provides separate first- and second-round figures.
The 2019 Electoral Code changed both the chamber’s statutory size and the representation framework. IPU Parline reports that 24 National Assembly seats were reserved for women in the 2023 legislative election. The election therefore had 109 seats at stake, including 24 women-only seats. In the 2023 arrangement, the 24 constituencies each had one reserved women’s seat.
Women in the National Assembly
Women held 28 of the 109 National Assembly seats after the January 2023 election. That was 25.69% of the chamber, according to IPU Parline. The result followed a substantial change in both the number of seats and the reserved-seat framework.
The comparison with 2019 is reported using the earlier chamber size. Women held 6 of 83 seats after the 2019 election, representing 7.23% of the National Assembly. Thus, the published figures for women’s representation were 28 of 109 seats in 2023 and 6 of 83 seats in 2019. The two percentages, 25.69% and 7.23%, are the corresponding shares reported by IPU Parline.
| Measure | 2019 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Total National Assembly seats | 83 | 109 |
| Seats held by women | 6 | 28 |
| Women’s share of seats | 7.23% | 25.69% |
| Women-only reserved seats | Not specified here | 24 |
Freedom House also notes that 24 National Assembly seats were reserved for women and that 28 women won seats in January 2023. The same source identifies Mariam Chabi Talata as Benin’s first vice president. These are institutional and representation facts tied to the 2023 legislative period and the 2024 country report, rather than forecasts.
Political rights and civil liberties
Freedom House’s scores provide a separate way to track political conditions. In the 2024 assessment, Benin received an overall score of 61 out of 100. Its Political Rights score was 19 out of 40, and its Civil Liberties score was 42 out of 60.
In the 2025 assessment, the overall score was 60 out of 100. The Political Rights score was 18 out of 40, while the Civil Liberties score remained 42 out of 60. The overall score and Political Rights score were therefore each 1 point lower in 2025 than in 2024, while the Civil Liberties score was unchanged. These are assessment scores from Freedom House, not election turnout percentages.
Freedom House says the 2024 score improved because opposition parties participated in the January legislative elections and one opposition party won seats. Its 2024 report also says legislative-election amendments raised the district threshold to 20% from 10%. The report’s discussion of the January 2023 election records the 24 reserved seats for women and the 28 women who won seats.
World Bank governance indicators
The World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators provide estimates and percentile ranks for 2023. The political-stability estimate for Benin was 0.38 on the WGI scale. The political-stability percentile rank was 31.753555297852, as reported through public indicator mirrors associated with the World Bank.
Benin’s 2023 rule-of-law estimate was -0.56 on the WGI scale, and its rule-of-law percentile rank was 33.0%. The control-of-corruption estimate was -0.49. The voice-and-accountability estimate was 0.32, while the regulatory-quality estimate was -0.44. These figures are attributed to the World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, with public indicator mirrors providing the percentile-rank presentation.
The WGI estimates and percentile rank should be read as different measures. The estimate is expressed on the WGI scale, while the percentile rank places the country’s reported result within the indicator’s cross-country distribution. The 2023 values are measurement-year figures; they are not projections of future political conditions and do not describe a particular election’s turnout or seat allocation.
Taken together, the election series, parliamentary data, representation figures, rights scores, and 2023 governance indicators describe several dimensions of Benin politics: participation varies by election and round, the National Assembly has 109 seats under the current framework, women held 28 seats after the 2023 election, and international indicator systems report separate scores for rights, political stability, rule of law, corruption control, voice and accountability, and regulatory quality.