1986 Sudanese parliamentary election

1986 Sudanese parliamentary election

1–12 April 1986

260 of the 301 seats to the National Assembly
Elections delayed in 41 seats
131 seats needed for a majority
Turnout3,948,544 (66.05%)
  First party Second party Third party
 
Leader Sadiq al-Mahdi Ahmed al-Mirghani Hassan al-Turabi
Party Umma DUP/NUP NIF
Leader's seat Aba Island Sahafa-Gabra
(lost)
Last election Banned Banned Banned
Seats won 100 63 51
Seat change 100 63 51
Popular vote 1,508,334 1,201,623 726,021
Percentage 38.44 30.63 18.51

Results by state

Prime Minister before election

Al-Jazuli Daf'allah
Independent

Elected Prime Minister

Al-Sadiq al-Mahdi
NUP

Parliamentary elections were held in Sudan between 1 and 12 April 1986 to elect members of the National Assembly. They were the first multi-party elections in the country since 1968, taking place one year after the overthrow of President Gaafar Nimeiry by the military. The Umma Party, led by Sadiq al-Mahdi, emerged as the largest party, winning 100 of the 260 filled seats. It was followed by the Democratic Unionist Party with 63 and the National Islamic Front with 51. No single party secured a majority, leading to the formation of a fragile coalition government.

The election took place amidst the Second Sudanese Civil War, and voting was postponed indefinitely in 41 seats in Southern Sudan due to security concerns. The election was among the freest and fairest elections in Africa up to that time. There were no reports by observers of electoral fraud.

To date, these are the last free elections held in Sudan.