Gabon’s interim President Brice Oligui Nguema will face three challengers in the upcoming presidential election, set to take place on April 12.
The official list of candidates was released by the Interior Minister on Sunday, following the deadline for submissions. While 19 candidacies were rejected, those individuals have been granted 72 hours to appeal their disqualification before the Constitutional Court.
Nguema took power in 2023 through a military coup, which ended the decades-long rule of Ali Bongo and his family. Speculation had been rife over whether he would contest the election, particularly after the adoption of a new constitution last year that did not prohibit him from running.
The new charter, which was overwhelmingly approved in a referendum, has been presented by the military authorities as a pathway to democratic governance.
Nguema’s main opponent is Alain-Claude Bilie By Nze, who served as Ali Bongo’s last Prime Minister.
He will also compete against Dr. Stéphane Germain Iloko, a former executive of the Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG), which dominated Gabonese politics from 1961 to 2023.
The final contender is Joseph Lapensée Essigone, a lawyer and tax inspector.
All four candidates are running as independents, with the official campaign period set to begin on March 29, 2025.
