On Saturday, September 27, 2025, Gabonese citizens lined up at polling stations across the country to cast their ballots in a historic set of local and legislative elections. This vote marked the final step in Gabon's political transition following the dramatic August 2023 military coup that brought an end to the Bongo family's 55-year rule, a dynasty that had shaped Gabon's political landscape since 1968. The elections, eagerly anticipated yet fraught with controversy, were the first opportunity for Gabonese voters to choose their representatives since the country’s return to constitutional democracy.
According to reporting by the Associated Press, more than 900,000 Gabonese were eligible to participate, electing 145 members of the National Assembly—including two representing the diaspora—and over 3,000 local and municipal councillors. The stakes were high: the officials chosen in this vote will replace those appointed by the military after the 2023 coup. The local polls, meanwhile, would indirectly decide the makeup of the Senate, mayors, and presidents of regional assemblies, giving these elections far-reaching implications for Gabon's future governance.
President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, the general who ousted Ali Bongo Ondimba in 2023, has been at the center of this transition. After winning the presidential election in April 2025—a contest made possible by a new electoral code that, for the first time, allowed military personnel to run—Nguema has sought a strong mandate for his newly formed Democratic Union of Builders (UDB) party. "Our sole objective is to secure a strong majority well beyond the absolute majority, in order to champion our ideas," Nguema posted on Facebook last week, as reported by Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Most candidates in these elections hail from either the UDB or the former ruling Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG), which, despite its ouster, now supports Nguema’s leadership. The PDG, founded in 1968 by Omar Bongo and dominant for decades, has seen its own internal turmoil in recent months. In April 2024, it narrowly escaped a ban after proposing a national dialogue, and in July, ousted president Ali Bongo challenged the legitimacy of the party’s new leadership, claiming in a social media video that he remained its rightful leader. Meanwhile, a handful of smaller, underfunded parties and independent candidates also threw their hats into the ring, hoping to carve out a place in the country’s new political order.
But the run-up to election day was far from smooth. The opposition, spearheaded by the Together for Gabon party of former prime minister Alain Claude Bilie-By-Nze, sounded the alarm on what they described as serious electoral “obstructions.” According to Reuters and AFP, they cited the late availability of voter cards—some town halls stayed open late into Friday night to distribute cards that only became available on Wednesday—the unavailability of proxies, the absence of electoral roll postings in provincial areas, and a lack of transparency in how polling stations were formed. The opposition warned of a “desire to exclude part of the electorate and organise large-scale fraud,” raising the specter of a tainted process just as Gabon seeks to restore its democratic credentials.
Despite these concerns, Gabon’s Interior Ministry, which oversaw the elections, pledged to ensure transparency. Officials promised public vote counting at each polling station, allowed observers to monitor the process, and committed to providing continuous updates of provisional results throughout election night. The ministry, however, stopped short of giving a firm date for the publication of final results, leaving some observers wary.
Saturday’s vote itself unfolded mostly peacefully, with voters braving early morning rain in Libreville to line up at polling stations from 8 a.m. local time. According to the Associated Press, the only significant disruption occurred in the commune of Ntoum, a suburb of the capital, where voting was canceled in one constituency due to tensions between rival candidates. Polls remained open until 6:00 p.m., and vote counting began immediately after closing. Observers were present to monitor the process, and the first results were expected by Sunday.
The broader context of these elections cannot be ignored. Gabon’s new constitution, adopted by referendum in 2024, cements the country’s presidential system and limits the power of parliament—meaning lawmakers cannot topple the government. This framework places even greater importance on the presidency and the party that controls it. The legislative elections, while symbolically vital, are thus part of a broader effort to stabilize Gabon’s institutions and restore public trust after years of political turbulence.
President Oligui Nguema, for his part, has made ambitious promises since taking office. He has pledged to diversify Gabon’s oil-dependent economy, reform the education system, and tackle the country’s glaring youth unemployment problem. As AP and Reuters note, Gabon faces significant challenges: unemployment is especially high among young graduates, and basic infrastructure—from roads connecting regional provinces to clean water supply—remains lacking in many areas. These are pressing issues that the new government and parliament will have to confront head-on.
Internationally, Gabon’s political realignment has also had repercussions. While France, the former colonial power, has been pushed out of several African nations in recent years, it continues to maintain a military base in Libreville, now shared with Gabonese forces. However, Paris has scaled back its troop presence, reflecting shifting dynamics in the region.
For many Gabonese, the elections represented both a break from the past and a test of the country’s commitment to genuine democracy. The outcome of the first round will determine which constituencies require a runoff, scheduled for October 11, 2025, in cases where no candidate secures an absolute majority. As the dust settles and results begin to trickle in, all eyes will be on whether President Nguema’s UDB can secure the sweeping mandate he seeks—or whether opposition warnings of exclusion and fraud will cast a shadow over Gabon’s new chapter.
In the coming weeks, Gabon’s leaders and citizens alike will face the daunting task of translating the promise of these elections into tangible progress. The path forward is uncertain, but for the first time in decades, Gabonese voters have had their say in shaping the nation’s future.