General Brice Oligui Nguema, Gabon’s transitional leader and former coup leader, has won the country’s presidential election with a sweeping 90.35% of the vote, marking a historic shift in Gabonese politics post-Bongo dynasty.

Key Points

• The election was held on April 12, 2025, and marked the first presidential vote since the 2023 military coup.
• Brice Oligui Nguema, who led the coup and served as transitional president, ran as an independent and secured 90.35% of the votes.
• His main challenger, former PM Alain Claude Bilie-By-Nze, received 3.02%.
• Voter turnout stood at 70.4%, the highest since multi-party elections began in 1993.
• International observers, including from the Commonwealth, described the election as calm and well-organized.
• The opposition criticized the process, citing alleged misuse of state resources and a lack of transparency.
• Nguema begins a seven-year term under Gabon’s new constitution, approved in late 2024.
• His government faces key challenges in economic reform and poverty reduction, despite the country’s oil wealth.