Ivory Coast Disqualifies Key Opposition Leaders from Presidential Race

The countdown to Yamoussoukro’s presidential election in October is already stirring controversy, as four major opposition figures have been barred from running. According to the country’s electoral commission, PDCI leader and main opposition figure Tidjane Thiam, former president Laurent Gbagbo, Charles Blé Goudé, and Guillaume Soro are ineligible to contest or vote. Thiam was removed over questions surrounding his Ivorian nationality, linked to a decades-old law disqualifying dual citizens. Though he renounced his French nationality in March, a court upheld his exclusion, prompting him to appeal to the UN. Meanwhile, Gbagbo and the two other opposition figures have been barred for years due to prior convictions and were not reinstated. With no plans to revise the voter list, critics argue democracy is under threat, casting a shadow over the upcoming vote.

France 24