On April 12, 2025, Gabon will have a crucial presidential election, and Brice Oligui Nguema, the head of the Junta, is expected to be the front-runner. The election is a pivotal event for the oil-rich country in central Africa as it moves from military to civilian governance following the August 2023 coup that put an end to more than 50 years of Bongo family dominance. In an effort to soften his reputation as a military commander, Nguema, the leader of the coup, ran as the “candidate of the people” and used social media and populist tactics to win over the population.
Key Highlights
Election Date: April 12, 2025 (Polls open 7:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.)
Main Frontrunner: Brice Oligui Nguema – current junta chief and transitional leader.
Previous Regime: End of 56-year Bongo dynasty following a coup in August 2023.
Number of Candidates: 8 candidates in the race.
Main Challenger: Alain-Claude Bilie By Nze – last Prime Minister under Ali Bongo.
New Electoral Code: Adopted in January 2025; Nguema suspended military duties to comply.
Brice Oligui Nguema – Profile and Campaign
Background: 50-year-old career soldier, formerly aide-de-camp to Omar Bongo and head of the presidential guard.
Campaign Slogan: “C’BON” – play on French “C’est bon” and his initials.
Voters are expected to head to the polls between 7:30 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. (0630 and 1700 GMT) on Saturday, with Alain-Claude Bilie By Nze, the last prime minister under ousted leader Ali Bongo, widely considered Mr. Oligui’s most credible challenger.
The results will be made public by the interior ministry of the central African country no later than April 16.
Throughout a brief campaign, Mr. Oligui has attempted to distance himself from his reputation as a military dictator by adopting social media dancing fads and positioning himself as the “candidate of the people.”
The junta chairman has even temporarily hung up his general’s uniform in order to run for a seven-year term in accordance with the new electoral code that was decided upon in January.
“He has brought change. We’ve noticed that in a year and a half he has done what the others had not been able to do in 50” years, said 49-year-old teacher Karen Minkoue, attending a rally on the Saturday before the vote.
But critics accuse Mr. Oligui, who had promised to hand power back to civilians, of failing to move on from the years of plunder of the country’s vast mineral wealth under the Bongos, whom he served for years.
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