Djibouti Votes as President Guelleh Is Widely Expected to Win

Djibouti — Djiboutians are voting Friday in a presidential contest that is all but certain to hand President Ismail Omar Guelleh another term, reinforcing his grip on power more than two decades after he first took office.

More than 200,000 registered voters are eligible to cast ballots in the Horn of Africa state, where just two candidates are on the ballot. Analysts say the ruling Rally for the People’s Progress (RPP) is poised to win the bulk of the vote.

Guelleh has repeatedly dominated the country’s elections since coming to power in 1999. He won about 74 percent of the vote that year, then more than 90 percent in 2005, around 80 percent in 2011 and roughly 86 percent in 2016. In the latest vote in 2021, he secured about 98 percent of ballots cast.

This year’s election is expected to unfold without major tension. No significant opposition bloc has publicly challenged the process or suggested it would refuse to accept the result.

Djibouti’s interior ministry is overseeing the vote, and international observers are in the country to watch the proceedings. Authorities say elections in Djibouti have traditionally passed peacefully, without delays or extensions, while daily routines have continued as normal — a marked contrast with the disruption that often follows polls in other parts of Africa.

AXADLETM