"Madagascar's lawmakers voted overwhelmingly at the National Assembly in Antananarivo on Tuesday to impeach President Andry Rajoelina, as the country's political crisis deepened following weeks of mass protests and unrest. Footage shows members of parliament casting and counting ballots, and Vice-President Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko announcing the result to loud applause. "131 voted Yes, one blank vote – that’s it! Out of 131 voters, 131 voted Yes, meaning they voted in favour of the motion for impeachment of Andry Rajoelina. There was one spoiled vote. No one voted No. It is declared that the impeachment motion against the President of the Republic, Andry Rajoelina, has passed," Randrianasoloniaiko stated. Shortly after the vote, Colonel Michael Randrianirina of Madagascar's elite military unit declared that the armed forces were taking control of the government, suspending the 2010 Constitution and establishing a transitional authority. According to the colonel, the Senate, the Constitutional Court, and the High Constitutional Court will be suspended, while the National Assembly will remain active. A ‘High Reform Court’ and other bodies will oversee a transition expected to last up to two years before a referendum and elections. Earlier in the day, Rajoelina condemned the developments as an attempted coup and urged citizens to remain calm in a televised address. He was later reportedly flown out of the country aboard a French military aircraft. The unrest in the former French colony has entered its third week, fuelled by youth-led protests over corruption, unemployment, rising living costs, and recurring power and water shortages. According to UN estimates, at least 22 people have been killed and more than 100 injured during the demonstrations, though government officials have disputed these figures. Rajoelina, who first took power in 2009 after protests ousted then-president Marc Ravalomanana, was re-elected in 2018 and again in 2023 in polls largely boycotted by the opposition."