Paul Kagame

===Elections and referendum===
Since ascending to the presidency in 2000, Kagame has faced three [[Elections in Rwanda|presidential elections]], in 2003, 2010 and 2017. On each occasion, he was re-elected in a landslide, winning more than 90 percent of the vote.{{sfn|shadmin|2017}} A constitutional amendment referendum in 2015, which gave Kagame the ability to stand for additional terms, also passed by similar margins.{{sfn|McVeigh|2015}} International election monitors, human rights organisations and journalists generally regard these elections as lacking freedom and fairness, with interventions by the Rwandan state to ensure Kagame's victory.{{sfn|Caplan|2018|p=161}}{{sfn|Department of State (II)|2017}}{{sfn|Human Rights Watch (IV)|2017}}{{sfn|Deutsche Welle|2017}} According to Ida Sawyer, Central Africa director for Human Rights Watch, "Rwandans who have dared raise their voices or challenge the status quo have been arrested, forcibly disappeared, or killed, independent media have been muzzled, and intimidation has silenced groups working on civil rights or free speech". Following the 2017 poll, Human Rights Watch released evidence of irregularities by election officials including forcing voters to write their votes in full view and casting votes for electors who had not appeared.{{sfn|Human Rights Watch (IV)|2017}} The [[United States Department of State]] said it was "disturbed by irregularities observed during voting" as well as "long-standing concerns over the integrity of the vote-tabulation process".{{sfn|Department of State (III)|2017}}

In their 2018 book ''How to Rig an Election'', political scientists [[Nic Cheeseman]] and [[Brian Klaas]] said they were asked by journalists why Kagame went "through the motions of organizing a national poll that he was predestined to win". The book gave likely reasons for the continuation of the polls, including the fact that elections are "important to secure a base level of international legitimacy" and that "not even pretending to hold elections will get a country kicked out of the African Union".{{sfn|Cheeseman|Klaas|2018|pp=214–215}} Law professor and human rights researcher Lars Waldorf wrote that the RPF's manipulation of polls could be designed to make itself appear stronger. Waldorf said that the party's margins of victory "are not meant to be convincing; rather, they are meant to signal to potential opponents and the populace that Kagame and the RPF are in full control."{{sfn|Waldorf|2017|p=83}} Scholars are divided on whether Kagame would have won the elections had he not used manipulative tactics. Writing about RPF intimidation of opposition candidates in the run-up to elections, Caplan said "what was most infuriating was that none of this was necessary for the RPF to hold on to power". Belgian academic [[Filip Reyntjens]] disagrees, however, stating that "the RPF is fully aware that opening up the political system would eventually lead to a loss of power".{{sfn|Reyntjens|2011}}

====Presidential election, 2003====
{{main|2003 Rwandan presidential election}}
The first post-genocide election was held in August 2003, following the adoption of the new constitution.{{sfn|BBC News (VIII)|2003}} In May, the parliament voted to ban the [[Republican Democratic Movement]] (MDR), following a parliamentary commission report accusing the MDR of "divisive" ideology.{{sfn|IRIN (II)|2003}} The MDR had been one of the coalition parties in the transitional government of national unity, and was the second-largest party in the country after the RPF.{{sfn|BBC News (IX)|2003}} [[Amnesty International]] criticised this move, claiming that "the unfounded allegations against the individuals mentioned in the report appear to be part of a government-orchestrated crackdown on the political opposition".{{sfn|Amnesty International (I)|2003}} Kagame was the RPF candidate, while former prime minister Twagiramungu was his main challenger. Twagiramungu had intended to run as the candidate for the MDR, but instead sought the presidency as an independent following the party's banishment.{{sfn|IRIN (III)|2003}} He returned to the country from Europe in June 2003 and began campaigning in August.{{sfn|IRIN (III)|2003}}{{sfn|BBC News (X)|2003}}

Kagame declared victory in the election one day after the poll,{{sfn|Beaver County Times|2003}} and his win was later confirmed by the National Electoral Commission.{{sfn|Nunley}} The final results showed that Kagame received {{Percentage|951|1000|1|%=&nbsp;per&nbsp;cent}} of the vote, Twagiramungu {{Percentage|36|1000|1|%=&nbsp;per&nbsp;cent}}, and the third candidate, Jean Nepomuscene Nayinzira, {{Percentage|13|1000|1|%=&nbsp;per&nbsp;cent}}; the voter turnout was {{Percentage|966|1000|1|%=&nbsp;per&nbsp;cent}}.{{sfn|Nunley}} The campaign, election day, and aftermath were largely peaceful, although an observer from the [[European Union]] (EU) raised concerns about intimidation of opposition supporters by the RPF.{{sfn|Reuters (I)|2003}} Twagiramungu rejected the result of the election and also questioned the margin of victory, saying "Almost 100 per cent? That's not possible".{{sfn|Reuters (I)|2003}} He filed a petition at the Supreme Court to nullify the result, but was unsuccessful and he left Rwanda shortly afterwards, fearing that he would be arrested.{{sfn|IRIN (IV)|2003}}{{sfn|Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada|2006}} The EU observer also questioned the result, citing "numerous irregularities", but also describing the poll as a "positive step" in the country's history.{{sfn|CPJ|2004}}

====Presidential election, 2010====
{{main|2010 Rwandan presidential election}}
[[File:Paul Kagame New York 2010.jpg|thumb|Kagame in 2010|upright|alt=Close up photo of Paul Kagame smiling at the premiere of the film Earth Made of Glass]]
Kagame ran for re-election in 2010, at the end of his first elected term.{{sfn|CJCR|2003|loc=articles 100–101}}{{sfn|Ross|2010}} He was endorsed by the RPF national congress as their candidate in May 2010, and was accepted as a candidate in July.{{sfn|Kagire|Straziuso|2010}} His highest-profile opponent was [[Victoire Ingabire]], a Hutu who had been living abroad for some years, and returned to Rwanda in January 2010 to run for the presidency.{{sfn|Kagire|Straziuso|2010}} After a series of criticisms of Kagame's policies, she was arrested in April and prohibited from running in the election,{{sfn|Whewell|2010}}{{sfn|New Times (I)|2010}} as part of what Amnesty International's Tawanda Hondora described as "pre-electoral repression".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2010/08/pre-election-attacks-rwandan-politicians-and-journalists-condemned/ |date=5 August 2010 |title=Pre-election attacks on Rwandan politicians and journalists condemned |author=[[Amnesty International]] |access-date=12 August 2021}}</ref> Kagame began his campaign with a rally at Kigali's [[Amahoro Stadium]] on 20 July,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kagame kicks off re-election campaign |author=Radio France Internationale |author-link=Radio France Internationale |date=20 July 2010 |access-date=12 August 2021 |url= https://www.rfi.fr/en/africa/20100720-kagame-kicks-re-election-campaign}}</ref> and held rallies across the country during the subsequent campaign period.{{sfn|Braquehais|Norris-Trent|2010}} The rallies attracted tens of thousands, shouting enthusiastically for Kagame, although reporters for ''[[The New York Times]]'' interviewed a number of Rwandans who said that they were "not free to vote against him and that government officials down to the village level had put enormous pressure on them to register to vote; contribute some of their meager earnings to Mr. Kagame’s campaign; and attend rallies".{{sfn|Gettleman|Kron|2010}}

The election went ahead in August 2010 without Ingabire and two other banned candidates, Kagame facing three opponents described by Human Rights Watch as "broadly supportive of the RPF".{{sfn|Human Rights Watch (II)|2010}} Kagame went on to receive {{Percentage|9308|10000|2|%=&nbsp;per&nbsp;cent}} of the vote in the election. Opposition and human rights groups said that the election was tainted by repression, murder, and lack of credible competition. Kagame responded by saying "I see no problems, but there are some people who choose to see problems where there are not."{{sfn|Al Jazeera (II)|2010}}

====Constitutional referendum, 2015====
{{main|2015 Rwandan constitutional referendum}}
As Kagame's second term progressed, he began to hint that he might seek to rewrite the term-limit clause of the Rwandan constitution, to allow him to run for a third term in the 2017 elections.{{sfn|Smith|2014}} Earlier in his presidency he had ruled it out,{{sfn|Smith|2014}} but in a 2014 speech at [[Tufts University]] in the United States, Kagame said that he did not know when he would leave office, and that it was up to the Rwandan people to decide.{{sfn|Smith|2014}} He told delegates "...let's wait and see what happens as we go. Whatever will happen, we'll have an explanation."{{sfn|Smith|2014}} The following year a protest occurred outside [[Parliament of Rwanda|parliament]],{{sfn|Laing|2015}} and a petition signed by 3.7&nbsp;million people—more than half of the electorate—was presented to lawmakers asking for Kagame to be allowed to stay in office.{{sfn|Agence France-Presse|2015}} The parliament responded by passing an amendment to the constitution in November 2015, with both the [[Chamber of Deputies of Rwanda|Chamber of Deputies]] and the [[Senate of Rwanda|Senate]] voting unanimously in favour.{{sfn|Al Jazeera (IV)|2015}} The motion passed kept the two-term limit in place, and also reduced the length of terms from 7 years to 5 years, but it made an explicit exception for Kagame, who would be permitted to run for a third 7-year term followed by two further 5-year terms, if he so desired.{{sfn|Al Jazeera (IV)|2015}} After the amendment was passed in parliament, a referendum was required for it to come into effect.{{sfn|Al Jazeera (IV)|2015}}

The referendum took place on 18 December 2015, with Rwandans overseas voting on 17 December.{{sfn|BBC News (XVIII)|2015}} The amendment was approved by the electorate, with 6.16&nbsp;million voters saying yes, approximately {{percentage|98|100|0|%=&nbsp;per&nbsp;cent}} of the votes.{{sfn|McVeigh|2015}} The electoral commission stated that the vote had been peaceful and orderly.{{sfn|McVeigh|2015}} The [[Democratic Green Party of Rwanda|Democratic Green Party]], the most prominent domestic group opposing the change, protested that it had not been permitted to campaign openly against the amendment.{{sfn|McVeigh|2015}} Human Rights Watch executive director [[Ken Roth]] announced on [[Twitter]] that he did not believe the election to be free and fair, saying there was "no suspense in Rwanda referendum when so many dissidents silenced, civil society stifled".{{sfn|McVeigh|2015}} The amendment itself was criticised by the [[European Union]] and also the United States, which released a statement saying that Kagame should respect the previous term limits and "foster a new generation of leaders in Rwanda".{{sfn|McVeigh|2015}} Kagame responded that it was not his own decision to seek a third term, but that the parliament and the people had demanded it.{{sfn|McVeigh|2015}}

====Presidential election, 2017====
{{main|2017 Rwandan presidential election}}
[[File:Vladimir Putin and Paul Kagame (2018-06-13) 02.jpg|thumb|Kagame with Russian President [[Vladimir Putin]] in June 2018]]
In accordance with the constitutional change, a presidential election was held in August 2017.{{sfn|Burke|2017}} The highest-profile opposition figure for the 2017 election was local businesswoman [[Diane Rwigara]]. Although she acknowledged that "much has improved under Kagame", Rwigara was also critical of Kagame's government, saying that "people disappear, others get killed in unexplained circumstances and nobody speaks about this because of fear".{{sfn|Sauuna|2017}} Like Ingabire in 2010, Rwigara was barred from running in the election.{{sfn|Maclean|2018}} Kagame was endorsed as the RPF's candidate for the election in mid-June,<ref>{{Cite web |title=RPF-Inkotanyi nominates Kagame for President |last=Kwibuka |first=Eugène |work=[[The New Times (Rwanda)|The New Times]] |date=18 June 2017 |access-date=18 August 2021 |url= https://www.newtimes.co.rw/section/read/214465}}</ref> and began his re-election campaign in mid-July with a rally in [[Ruhango]].{{sfn|Sevenzo|2017}}

After three weeks of campaigning, concluding with a large rally in [[Gasabo District]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Photos & Video: I will be your shock absorber, Kagame says at final rally |last=Kwibuka |first=Eugène |work=[[The New Times (Rwanda)|The New Times]] |date=3 August 2017 |access-date=18 August 2021 |url= https://www.newtimes.co.rw/section/read/217295}}</ref> the election went ahead between Kagame and two opposition candidates.<ref name="ktpr_Rwan">{{Cite web |title=Rwanda Election 2017 Results |work=KT Press |date=3 August 2017 |access-date=18 August 2021 |url= https://www.ktpress.rw/presidential-votes-2017-results/}}</ref> Kagame was re-elected for a third term with {{Percentage|9879|10000|1|%=&nbsp;per&nbsp;cent}} of the vote, his highest percentage to date. He was sworn in for another seven-year term on 18 August.{{sfn|Tumwebaze|2017}} As with his previous victories, independent monitors and human rights organisations cited irregularities and intimidation in the conduct of the election.{{sfn|Department of State (IV)|2018}} Cheeseman and Klaas said in their book that he had "not even bothered to try and manipulate the election in the clever ways" he had used in previous campaigns.{{sfn|Cheeseman|Klaas|2018|p=218}}