Overview
- Provisional figures from the National Elections Authority give President Faustin-Archange Touadéra 76.1% and challenger Anicet Georges Dologuélé 14.6%.
- Dologuélé accused election officials of manipulating data and excluding many results without offering evidence, a claim the presidency’s spokesperson rejected.
- Former prime minister Henri-Marie Dondra called for canceling the vote over alleged fraud and legal violations, while a major opposition coalition had boycotted the election after term limits were scrapped in 2023.
- Touadéra told Russia’s TASS he admires Vladimir Putin and has invited him to visit, as the country’s security ties with Moscow evolve from Wagner’s role toward a proposed Africa Corps framework.
- Analysts say the next term hinges on foreign security partnerships and tackling extreme poverty despite mineral wealth, with newly held local elections potentially opening a path to decentralisation.