1946 Ubangi-Shari Representative Council election

none French Equatorial Africa 1946 1952 All 25 seats in the Representative Council 13 15 December 1946 yes yes First College Chamber of Commerce-linked list no 10 Second College Ubangian Economic and Social Action Georges Darlan 15 Chairman of the Representative Council Léon Gaume Representative Council elections were held in Ubangi-Shari on 15 December 1946. There were two separate colleges of voters; ten seats were allocated for Europeans and fifteen seats were allocated to Africans. The Ubangian Economic and Social Action (AESO) won all fifteen African seats, whilst the European seats went mainly to figures linked to the Chamber of Commerce. Electoral system thumb|The new city hall of Bangui, where the polling stations for African voters of the territorial capital were locatedLegislation passed on 5 October 1946 and a subsequent 25 October decree stipulated that elections would be held for assemblies of each of the territories of French Equatorial Africa (AEF).Afrique Équatoriale Française: L'Oubangui-Chari. Agence de la France d'outre-mer, 1950. p. 8 The first round of the election was scheduled for 15 December 1946, with a second round planned for 12 January 1947 if required. Whilst the assemblies of the other AEF territories had 30 members each, the Ubangi-Shari Representative Council had 25 members. Voters were divided into two electoral colleges: a First College consisting of citizens with French civil status (i.e. Europeans) and a Second College consisting of citizens with certain categories of personal status citizenship (France) personal status fr Statut personnel (France) (i.e. Africans).Idourah, Silvère Ngoundos. Colonisation et confiscation de la justice en Afrique: l'administration de la justice au Gabon, Moyen-Congo, Oubangui-Chari et Tchad : de la création des colonies à l'aube des indépendances. Harmattan, 2001. p. 177 Ten seats would be elected by the First College and fifteen seats would be elected by the Second College. The mandate of CROC would last five years. The Governor of Ubangi-Shari Jean Chalvet issued an ordinance on 14 November 1946, stating that the electoral rolls of the 10 November 1946 French legislative election would be used for the CROC election but that individuals obtaining a decision of a Judge of the Peace could be added to the electoral rolls. The governor ordered that polling stations be open from 07:00 to 18:00 on election day. There would be a polling station in each subdivision, set up by an official delegated by the Head of Department. In addition, 26 additional polling stations would be set up in agricultural areas. In the Mixed Commune of Bangui, there would be three polling stations – one at the old city hall (for Europeans residing in Bangui and Bimbo Department) and two at the new city hall (for Africans residing in Bangui). There was a single constituency for the entire territory for the First College election, which had around 3,000 registered voters.http://webs.ono.com/juanfandos/parliament.htm Parliament of the Central African Republic Juan Fandos-Rius 14 November 2007 10 January 2026 7 February 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080207022743/http://webs.ono.com/juanfandos/parliament.htm dead The Second College was divided into four geographic constituencies with a total of 31,124 registered voters. ConstituencyAreaElectorateNumber of seatsFirst Constituency (Berbérati)Berbérati, Carnot, Nola, Boda and Bouar-Baboua subdivisions6,9473Second Constituency (Bangui)Bangui, Bimbo, M'Baïki, Damara, Bossembélé, Bossangoa, Bouca, Batangafo, Bozoum, Paoua and Bocaranga subdivisions, as well as the Mixed Commune (Overseas France) Mixed Commune fr Commune mixte (France d'outre-mer) of Bangui12,3025Third Constituency (Bambari)Fort-Sibut, Grimari, Kouango, Bambari, Alindao, Mobaye, Kembé Ippy, Bria, Bakala, Dékoa, Fort-Crampel and N'Délé subdivisions7,5365Fourth Constituency (Bangassou)Bangassou, Ouango, Rafaï, Obo-Djemah, Bakouma-Yalinga, Ouadda and Birao subdivisions4,3392Source: Pénel, Journal OfficielJournal Officiel de l'Afrique Equatoriale Francaise, 1er Decembre 1946. p. 1488-1489, 1507-1508 Contesting parties In the First College, there were three lists. The main list in the fray was the one put fielded by the 'old guard' among the French settler population. Most of the candidates on that list were linked to the Chamber of Commerce. In the Second College election, there were lists linked to the Ubangian Economic and Social Action (AESO) in all four constituencies. AESO was led by Georges Darlan and backed by Barthélemy Boganda. In two constituencies AESO faced opposition from socialist lists; in the Second Constituency (Bangui) there was a candidate list consisting of Alphonse Doungouale (clerk), Barnabé Nzilavo (clerk), Théophile Nguini, Jean-Marie Kobozo (teacher) and Tiemoko-Diarra, and in the Third Constituency (Bambari) there was a socialist-communist list consisting of Ferdinand Bassamongou (teacher), Émile Embi-Maïdou (writer, interpreter), Antoine Gabati (writer, interpreter), Gabriel Pounaba (chief) and Augustin Bayonne (customs clerk). Nguini and Bayonne were members of the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) and leaders in the Ubanguian trade union movement. Results The first round of voting was held on 15 December as scheduled.Pénel, Jean-Dominique. Barthélemy Boganda: Ecrits et discours 1946-1951 : la lutte décisive. Editions L'Harmattan, 1995. pp. 32-34 The results were declared on 28 December. Unlike the elections for the assemblies of other AEF territories, no second round of voting was held as all seats were filled in the first round of voting. All ten seats in the First College were easily won by the Chamber of Commerce-linked list. In the Second College election voter participation was 53.61% (3,724 voters) in the First Constituency (Berbérati), 61.26% (7,536 voters) in the Second Constituency (Bangui), 71.43% (5,383 voters) in the Third Constituency (Bamberi) and 43.49% (1,887 voters) in the Fourth Constituency (Bangassou). The AESO list candidates won all of the 15 seats allocated to the Second College. The socialist lists obtained 1,389 votes (25.8%) in the Second Constituency (Bangui) and 2,002 votes (37.19%) in the Third Constituency (Bamberi). First College Chamber of Commerce-linked list 10 Two other lists 0 Second College Ubangian Economic and Social Action 15 Socialist–Communists 2002 0 Socialist 1389 0 31124 Fandos-Rius Elected members ConstituencyMemberFirst CollegeRobert Aubé fr (Director of the Compagnie Equatoriale des Mines)Charles-Jean Barbarin (architect)Christian Barnérias (plantation manager)Yves Belan (merchant, transport entrepreneur)Léon Gaume (company director)H. Jeandreau (company director)L. Levêque (Director of l'Ecole Territoriale d'Agriculture de Grimari)André-Jean-Marie Michel (reverend, missionary at Fort-Sibut)Henri Triponel (Director of Société France-Congo)Jean Lhuillier fr (agricultural engineer).Second CollegeFirst Constituency(Berbérati)Réné Gamona (chief)Gaston Bafatoro (chief, writer, interpreter)Théophile Gono (administration official)Second Constituency(Bangui)Bernard Condomat (plantation owner)Georges DarlanHenri Kinkolo (radio operator)Jacques Koppé (teacher)Arthur Onghaïe (accountant)Third Constituency(Bamberi)Benoît Mombeto (senior administration clerk)Antoine Darlan (clerk)Louis Martin Yetina (education supervisor)Barthélemy Zinga-Piroua (clerk)Pierre Enza (teacher)Fourth Constituency(Bangassou)Joachim Vermaud-Hetman (grandson of the Sultan of Rafaï, special agent)Ibrahim Tello (administration official)Source: Pénel, Sénat,Sénat AUBÉ Robert - Ancien sénateur d'Oubangui-Chari https://www.senat.fr/senateur-4eme-republique/aube_robert0376r4.html Fandos-Rius & Bradshaw Aftermath After the election Léon Gaume (of the First College) was elected chairman of the Council.Fandos-Rius, Juan, and Bradshaw, Richard. Historical Dictionary of the Central African Republic. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2025. p. 61, 112, 132, 192, 649 In 1952 the Representative Council was replaced by a Territorial Assembly. References Ubangi Category:Parliamentary elections in the Central African Republic Representative Category:Election and referendum articles with incomplete results Category:December 1946 in Africa