The Dahomeyan Democratic Union (, UDD) was a political party in
French Dahomey.
History
The UDD was established in 1955 by a merger of the
Dahomeyan Progressive Union (UPD) and the
African People's Bloc (BPA). It aimed to be a nationwide party, but despite initially gaining support from across the country, it quickly became identified as the party of the
Fon of
Abomey and
Cotonou
Cotonou (; ) is the largest city in Benin. Its official population count was 679,012 inhabitants in 2012; however, over two million people live in the larger urban area.
The urban area continues to expand, notably toward the west. The city lies ...
.
[
The party failed to win a seat in the ]French National Assembly
The National Assembly (, ) is the lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral French Parliament under the French Fifth Republic, Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (France), Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known ...
in the 1956 elections, and split into two factions later in the year over the issue of affiliation with the African Democratic Rally (RDA); former BPA leader Justin Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin became head of the dominant RDA faction, whilst Alexandre Adandé and former UPD leader Émile Derlin Zinsou headed the smaller UDD-Convention.[Patrick Manning (2004) ''Slavery, Colonialism and Economic Growth in Dahomey, 1640-1960'', Cambridge University Press, p. 279]
Despite its internal problems and regionalised support base, the UDD emerged as the second-largest party in the 1957 Territorial Assembly elections, winning seven seats. However, the 1959 elections produced an unbalanced result; although the UDD received 44% of the vote, more than any other party, it won just 11 of the 70 seats in the Territorial Assembly, whilst the Dahomeyan Democratic Rally (RDD) won 22 seats with 17% of the vote and the Republican Party of Dahomey (PRD) took 37 seats, more than three times the number of the UDD.[Mathurin C Houngnikpo & Samuel Decalo (2012) ''Historical Dictionary of Benin'', Scarecrow Press, p. 286] Following the elections, accusations of fraud led to an agreement being reached with the PRD to redistribute nine seats.[ Although this increased the UDD's seat tally to 20, it was still the smallest party in the Assembly.][Elections in Benin]
African Elections Database
In elections
An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...
held the following year, the Dahomeyan Unity Party, a merger of the PRD and the RDD, won every seat after President Hubert Maga changed the electoral system, leaving the UDD without parliamentary representation. Following the elections, the UDD was banned on 11 April 1961 and Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin was imprisoned.[''Dictionary of African Biography'', Oxford University Press, p. 139]
References
{{Beninese political parties
Defunct political parties in Benin
Political parties established in 1955
Political parties disestablished in 1961
Rassemblement Démocratique Africain
1955 establishments in French West Africa