Gabonese citizens began voting on Saturday in the country’s first presidential election since the 2023 military coup. The vote features eight candidates, with junta leader General Brice Oligui Nguema widely seen as the frontrunner.
Oligui, who ousted President Ali Bongo on August 30, 2023, ending the Bongo family’s 55-year grip on power, has consistently led in the polls. Accusing the Bongo regime of decades of corruption and mismanagement, Oligui stepped in as transitional president, pledging to restore civilian rule.
Long queues formed at polling stations in the capital, Libreville. Among first-time voters was 30-year-old casino worker Aurele Ossantanga Mouila, who said, “I did not have confidence in the earlier regime.”
With a population of 2.3 million, Gabon faces challenges including widespread youth unemployment, poor infrastructure, frequent power and water cuts, and growing public debt. Despite multiple government plans, only 2,000 of the country’s 10,000 kilometers of roads are considered usable. The sole railway line is plagued by frequent derailments, and rural youth unemployment exceeds 60%.
Oligui shed his military uniform for civilian attire during the campaign as he seeks a seven-year term. His top challenger, former Prime Minister Alain-Claude Bilie By Nze, presents himself as a reformist aiming to break with the past. By Nze has criticized Oligui as representing continuity with the Bongo era, under which he served as head of the Republican Guard.
Roughly 920,000 voters are eligible, with polls open from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Final results are expected Monday.
At a rally Thursday, Oligui declared himself the candidate of the people, promising a “historic victory.” His campaign slogan, “C’BON,” a play on his initials and the French phrase for “It’s good,” is displayed throughout Libreville—unlike the largely absent posters of his opponents.
Critics accuse Oligui of failing to break from past mismanagement, despite his earlier promises. He previously served both Omar Bongo and Ali Bongo in high-ranking security roles.
The election comes as the country struggles economically. National debt reached 73.3% of GDP in 2024 and is projected to hit 80% in 2025. One in three Gabonese lives below the poverty line, despite the nation’s oil wealth.
Political analyst Neyer Kenga noted that restoring constitutional order is a key campaign theme. She emphasized that while authorities promise a fair and transparent vote, recent history—marked by post-election violence in 2009 and 2016, as well as the 2023 coup—makes voter sentiment unpredictable.
“All Gabonese are now firmly in favor of democracy and rules-based governance,” Kenga said.
AFP
