Many Yemenis are rightly questioning whether Tuesday’s vote constitutes the democratic future they have fought for, and in many cases, died for; whether this is really the promised end to Saleh’s 33-year rule.

Over a year after Yemenis first took to the streets to demand political reform, the country will go to the polls in an uncontested election in which ex-President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s deputy is the sole candidate.

In a deal signed late last year and brokered by Gulf states in Saudi Arabia, where Saleh was recovering from wounds sustained in a rocket attack on his palace, the former president agreed to transfer power to Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Now in the U.S. for further treatment, Saleh has vowed to return once more to Yemen.

The deal stipulated that Hadi could run uncontested, granted Saleh immunity from prosecution and allowed his party, the General People’s Congress, to maintain power through a power-sharing deal with the opposition. Twelve members of Saleh’s family have retained their positions in senior security and political roles, including his son as commander of the Republican Guard Forces and his nephew as commander of the paramilitary Central Security Forces.

While Hadi has vowed to usher in major reforms, including the drafting of a new constitution and a reorganization of the army, the country faces many great challenges, and coupled with Hadi’s ascendancy to power in a way many view as undemocratic, it is unclear as to what the next few years will hold.

Beset by political instability for decades, Yemen today appears increasingly chaotic. In the south, many feel that reunification was a disaster, and still believe they are living under the control of an occupying force. Many have planned to boycott Tuesday’s vote, and a low turnout could further delegitimize Hadi’s reign. A day ahead of the elections, one polling station in Aden was bombed, with a soldier killed in nearby shooting.

The country is widely viewed as the most fertile remaining ground for Al-Qaeda activity in the region, with the national wing, AQAP, increasingly active.

In the Saada province bordering Saudi Arabia, Houthi rebels, whom Saleh’s forced failed to crush, maintain control, and have also vowed to boycott Tuesday’s election. Fighting between Shiiti Houthis and Salafis has also increased over the past few weeks, adding a sectarian threat to Yemen’s future.

Continuing economic deterioration, which was partly responsible for last year’s outbreak of protests, has led workers across the country to strike, leading last week led to the closure of an oil pipeline. Around half the workforce is unemployed and chronic social problems show no sign of abating.

Coupled with endemic corruption, none of these signs point toward a stable, democratic or prosperous Yemen. They point toward the creation of a failed state.