Republic of Congo presidential election set for March 15

The Republic of Congo has set the presidential election for March 15.

This was announced by the government's spokesperson Thierry Moungalla.

According to the Constitution, the presidential election must be held at least 30 days and no more than 40 days before the end of the current presidential term.

Incumbent President Denis Sassou-Nguesso was sworn in for this term on April 16, 2021.

The electoral administration has not yet set the deadlines for submitting candidacies.

In the meantime, the Congolese Labour Party (PCT) has already nominated Denis Sassou-Nguesso as its candidate. 

Other possible candidates include former rebel leader Frédéric Bintsamou, alias Pastor Ntumi, and Dave Mafoula, the youngest candidate in the last presidential election.

President Sassou Nguesso took power in 1979. He was defeated in the first multi-party elections in 1992 by Pascal Lissouba.

But this very rare example of peaceful alternation in Central Africa ended in 1997 when Sassou Nguesso returned to power after a civil war with Lissouba's forces. In 2015, he broke the constitutional limit that limited the number of presidential terms to two.

For years, the Congolese government has also been in the news because of a high-profile investigation in France. In 2017, people close to President Sassou Nguesso were indicted for "laundering of public funds" in the so-called "ill-gotten gains" affair, which also targets the ruling families in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.