Keypoints:
- Ouattara launches campaign with top allies
- Religious leaders urge calm and restraint
- Key rivals barred from contesting the poll
AS Cote d’Ivoire enters the final stretch before its presidential election, President Alassane Ouattara has formally unveiled his senior campaign leadership team, signalling both his confidence and the high stakes of the upcoming vote.
The official campaign period runs from October 10 to 23, with voting set for October 25, 2025.
At a ceremony attended by top officials of Ouattara’s Rassemblement des Houphouëtistes pour Démocratie et Paix (RHDP) party and throngs of supporters, key appointments were confirmed. Gilbert Kafana Koné was named National Campaign Director for General Coordination, Prime Minister Robert Beugré Mambé will oversee Technical Structures, while Vice President Tiémoko Meyliet Koné will chair the Strategic Orientation Committee.
According to reports from French broadcaster RTI and local press, the event drew senior party figures and provincial leaders in a show of unity ahead of the polls.
Ouattara used the occasion to urge a peaceful, issues-based campaign.
‘We will not engage in insults,’ he said. ‘We hear the insults and hatred being uttered, but do not take them into account. We will present our project to the Ivorians. We will defend together our record of governance.’
He added that his administration’s record was ‘unassailable’ and called on all parties to ensure a calm and respectful electoral period.
Calls for calm as tensions linger
Religious leaders have echoed similar appeals for peace. The Episcopal Conference of Cote d’Ivoire (CECCI) and the Higher Council of Imams, Mosques and Islamic Affairs (COSIM) both released statements urging citizens to exercise restraint and preserve national unity.
‘We call on all Ivorians, whatever their political affiliation, to act with wisdom and responsibility,’ the CECCI statement said. ‘Peace must prevail over partisan interest.’
Ahead of the 2025 vote, several high-profile opposition figures — including former President Laurent Gbagbo and business leader Tidjane Thiam — were barred from running. The Independent Electoral Commission cited irregularities in their registration or legal disputes affecting their eligibility.
Their exclusion has sparked debate over electoral fairness, though Ouattara’s supporters insist the process remains transparent and lawful.
With the campaign now officially underway, attention is focused on whether Cote d’Ivoire can sustain its pledge of peaceful competition — or whether the deep political divides of past elections might resurface.
The weeks ahead are expected to test both Ouattara’s political strategy and the country’s resolve to preserve stability as it approaches one of the most consequential votes in its modern history.
