Elections in Rwanda are manipulated in various ways, which include banning opposition parties, arresting or assassinating critics, and electoral fraud.
In practice, it functions as a one-party state ruled by the Rwandan Patriotic Front and its leader Paul Kagame.
The Decree of 14 July 1952 by the Belgian colonial authorities introduced an element of democracy to the Rwandan political system.
Parliamentary elections were delayed until 1981 and saw the National Republican Movement for Democracy and Development (MRND), the sole legal party, win all 64 seats.
Due to the Rwandan Civil War and the subsequent genocide, the next elections were not held until 2003, by which time the country had reverted to being a multi-party democracy.
Members of sector and district councils are elected indirectly from the level below, with reserved seats for representatives of the interest groups of women and of youth.