Key Togolese protest city in lockdown as presidential vote approaches Sokodé, Togo's second largest city, was a key site of huge anti-government protests that shook the nation of eight million people through 2017 and 2018. Now, with protests largely having fizzled out, residents of Sokodé are calmly preparing to vote in Saturday's presidential election, even as the opposition continues to suffer from state repression. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES