The Rally for Democracy and Social Progress (, RDPS) is a political party in the Republic of the Congo, founded by Jean-Pierre Thystère Tchicaya.
History Thystère Tchicaya founded the RDPS on 29 October 1990, after splitting from another opposition group, the National Union for Democracy and Progress (UNDP).Patrice Yengo, La guerre civile du Congo-Brazzaville, 1993-2002: "chacun aura sa part" (2006), KARTHALA Editions, page 62 . The RDPS won nine seats in the June–July 1992 parliamentary election.IPU-PARLINE page on the 1992 parliamentary election.
Initially part of the National Alliance for Democracy (AND), a coalition of left-wing parties that supported Pascal Lissouba, the RDPS soon broke with the AND and joined the Union for Democratic Renewal (URD) opposition coalition, led by Bernard Kolélas."Le fait du jour - Isidore Mvouba, pathétique !", Les Dépêches de Brazzaville, 25 June 2008 . Together with the Union for the Republic (UR) and the Movement for Democracy and Salvation (MDS), the RDPS formed an alliance, the Movement for Unity and Reconstruction (MUR), in November 1996.Joachim Emmanuel Goma-Thethet, "Alliances in the political and electoral process in the Republic of Congo 1991–97", in Liberal Democracy and Its Critics in Africa: Political Dysfunction and the Struggle for Social Progress (2005), ed. Tukumbi Lumumba-Kasongo, Zed Books, page 118. A few days after rebels loyal to Denis Sassou Nguesso captured Brazzaville, the capital, at the end of the civil war in October 1997, Tchicaya announced the support of the RDPS for Sassou Nguesso."Congo: Pointe-Noire mayor declares his party's support for Sassou-Nguesso", Radio France Internationale, 20 October 1997.
In the parliamentary election held on 24 June and 5 August 2007, the party won two out of 137 seats.For detailed results see Republic of the Congo parliamentary election, 2007 and "L'alliance présidentielle occupe 125 des 137 sièges parlementaires", Xinhua (Jeuneafrique.com), 25 August 2007 .
RDPS President Thystère Tchicaya died on 20 June 2008."Décès à Paris de l'ancien président de l'assemblée nationale, Jean Pierre Thystère Tchicaya", Les Dépêches de Brazzaville, 21 June 2008 . Bernard Batchi succeeded him as Interim President of the RDPS.Frenette Antsoua Loembet, "Les Ponténégrins ont rendu un hommage mérité à Jean-Pierre Thystere Tchicaya", Les Dépêches de Brazzaville, 11 July 2008 . Later, the party was led by Thystère Tchicaya's son, Jean-Marc Thystère Tchicaya. On 10 August 2015 he was nominated Minister of Hydrocarbures, allowing RDPS to formally join the government. In January 2016, the party pledged its support for Denis Sassou Nguesso in the March 2016 presidential election.Roger Ngombé, "Election présidentielle : Le RDPS promet de soutenir la candidature de Denis Sassou N’Guesso ", ADIAC, 8 February 2016 .
The party contested the 2017 parliamentary election as part of the presidential majority winning only three out of 151 seats. Following the election Jean-Marc Thystère Tchicaya was reconfirmed ad Minister of Hydrocarbures in the newly formed Clément Mouamba's second cabinet. In the 2021 presidential election the party supported once again Sassou Nguesso's candidacy, that was reelected for his fourth term. The following year, in the occasion of the 2022 parliamentary election the party obtained only two seats, one down from the previous election.
Electoral history Presidential elections Election year Candidate 1st Round 2nd Round Results # Votes % Votes # Votes % Votes1992Jean-Pierre Thystère Tchicaya45,4665.80%colspan=2 Lost
National Assembly elections ElectionParty leaderVotes%Seats+/–PositionResult1992Jean-Pierre Thystère Tchicaya New 4th1993 1 4th2002 20 2nd2007 28 10th2012Jean-Marc Thystère Tchicaya 3 4th 2017 2 5th2022 1 8th
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