Ivory Coast’s 83-year-old President Alassane Ouattara has secured a fourth term in office, winning a landslide victory in the country’s presidential election held on Saturday, October 25, 2025. According to provisional results announced by the Independent Electoral Commission on Monday, October 27, Ouattara garnered 89.77% of the vote, extending his rule over the West African nation for another five years. The announcement, which was made by commission president Ibrahime Kuibiert-Coulibaly, confirmed what many observers had anticipated in the run-up to the vote.
More than 8.7 million Ivorians, including those in the diaspora, were eligible to vote, yet turnout was only 50.1%—a figure comparable to the 2020 and 2015 elections, but far below the historic 80% turnout in the first round of 2010, as reported by Al Jazeera. The low participation rate has fueled questions about the legitimacy and competitiveness of the poll, especially given the exclusion of Ouattara’s most prominent rivals.
Former Commerce Minister Jean-Louis Billon, who congratulated Ouattara on Sunday, finished a distant second with 3.09% of the vote. Simone Gbagbo, a former first lady and ex-wife of ousted President Laurent Gbagbo, came third with 2.42%. The remaining candidates, lacking major party backing and resources, were not perceived as serious contenders. As BBC News noted, this outcome was hardly surprising, given that both Gbagbo and former Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam—widely considered the only real threats to Ouattara—were barred from running.
The road to this election was marred by controversy and unrest. Both Gbagbo and Thiam were excluded from the ballot, the former due to a criminal conviction and the latter for holding dual French and Ivorian nationality. Their disqualification sparked protests, particularly in the country’s southern opposition strongholds. In early October, demonstrations against the exclusions led to hundreds of arrests and several unexplained kidnappings, while the Ivorian Human Rights Commission reported six deaths linked to the election, according to Deutsche Welle.
Opposition groups, including the parties of Gbagbo and Thiam, denounced the vote as a "civilian coup d’etat" and refused to recognize Ouattara as a legitimately elected leader. As reported by BBC News, they urged their supporters to boycott the election, contributing to the low turnout. This echoes the events of 2020, when Ouattara’s controversial bid for a third term—made possible by a 2016 constitutional change removing presidential term limits—was similarly boycotted by the opposition. Ouattara won that election with 94% of the vote.
Ouattara has been in power since 2011, assuming the presidency after a bloody post-election crisis in which former President Gbagbo refused to concede defeat, leading to violence that left about 3,000 people dead. Gbagbo was subsequently arrested and sent to The Hague, where he was acquitted of crimes related to the violence. Since then, Ouattara has presided over a period of relative stability and economic growth, positioning Ivory Coast as the world’s largest cocoa producer and attracting foreign investment. Under his leadership, the country has experienced significant infrastructure development and an economic boom, a point that Ouattara and his supporters are quick to highlight.
Yet, critics argue that the benefits of this growth have not been evenly distributed. Social inequality, high youth unemployment, and the rising cost of living continue to plague many Ivorians. As Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris reported from Abidjan, “A lot of Ivorians say that the economic success hasn’t reached them yet. A lot of them say they still struggle to feed their families because of the high cost of living. And also, there are fewer jobs for youth to get.” Ouattara has promised to address these issues, pledging reforms to reduce inequality and improve opportunities for young people, but whether these promises will translate into tangible change remains to be seen.
Security was another major theme of Ouattara’s campaign. With violence spilling over from Sahel neighbors Mali and Burkina Faso, where armed groups like Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) and the ISIL affiliate in the Greater Sahara (ISGS) have been active, Ouattara has increased defense spending and troop deployments, especially in the northern regions. His government has also purchased armored vehicles from China to bolster security. Despite these measures, internal instability is a growing concern, and Ouattara has spoken of the need to eventually pass the torch to a new generation of leaders. However, with no clear successor in sight and divisions within the ruling party, some analysts warn that Ivory Coast could face a leadership crisis reminiscent of the turmoil that followed the death of founding President Felix Houphouet-Boigny in 1993.
The Constitutional Council is expected to validate the provisional results in the coming days, after reviewing any potential legal challenges. Under Ivorian law, the Council has five days from the announcement of provisional results to declare the final outcome. While few expect a reversal of Ouattara’s victory, the opposition’s refusal to recognize the result and the underlying tensions in the country suggest that the president’s fourth term may be anything but smooth sailing.
International observers have expressed concern about the fairness of the election. Beverly Ochieng, a senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told The New York Times, “It is not a competitive election—it is just to tick the box.” This sentiment is echoed by many Ivorians who feel that the exclusion of major opposition figures and the government’s control over the electoral process have undermined the democratic process.
Still, Ouattara’s supporters argue that his repeated electoral victories reflect the will of the people and the stability he has brought to a country once wracked by conflict. Abou Bamba, an adviser to the president, dismissed claims that it was time for a new face at the helm. “It is not fair to say Ouattara has overstayed—because he has been elected,” Bamba said, as quoted by The New York Times. When pressed about whether this would be Ouattara’s final term, Bamba responded, “He made it clear that he won’t run for another term. But if he wants to run again, I think he is within his rights to do so.”
As Ivory Coast looks ahead, the challenges facing Ouattara’s government are as formidable as ever: healing political divisions, delivering on economic promises, managing security threats, and—perhaps most importantly—ensuring a peaceful and credible transition when the time comes. For now, the country remains in a state of watchful anticipation, waiting to see whether the president’s sweeping victory will translate into meaningful progress for all Ivorians.
