On Monday, October 27, 2025, Ivory Coast’s President Alassane Ouattara has secured a fourth term in office, winning 89.8 percent of the vote in an election overshadowed by the disqualification of two major rivals, former President Laurent Gbagbo and former Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam.
The electoral commission announced that businessman Jean-Louis Billon placed second with just 3.09 percent, while Simone Gbagbo, ex-wife of the former president, garnered 2.42 percent. Voter turnout stood at 50.1 percent, reflecting widespread apathy following opposition calls for a boycott. The results remain provisional pending validation by the Constitutional Council.
The opposition alliance comprising Gbagbo and Thiam’s parties has rejected the results on Sunday, labelling the election a “civilian coup d’état” and refusing to recognise Ouattara’s victory. The 83-year-old leader, who first came to power in 2011 after Gbagbo’s ouster, has now extended his rule following constitutional reforms in 2016 that removed term limits. Despite the landslide win, tensions remain high as critics accuse the government of eroding democratic space and undermining political pluralism in the West African nation.