CAR 2025 Presidential Election Touadera: Power, Russian Presence, and Frozen Opposition
Analysis of the CAR 2025 Presidential Election held on Dec 28. President Touadera seeks a third term amid Russian Wagner Group presence and opposition suppression.
The ballots are being cast, but the outcome feels written in the stars. On December 28, 2025, the Central African Republic (CAR) began its general election, with incumbent President Faustin-Archange Touadera widely projected to secure a controversial third term.
CAR 2025 Presidential Election Touadera: A Preordained Victory?
Polling stations opened at 05:00 GMT and are set to close at 17:00 GMT. Roughly 2.3 million voters across this nation of 5.5 million are electing a president and legislative representatives. Touadera, aged 68, relies on a 2023 constitutional change that abolished term limits, allowing him to bypass the previous two-term rule.
Security is stifling in the capital, Bangui. Alongside the national army and MINUSCA peacekeepers, Russian Wagner Group mercenaries are patrolling the streets. Their presence has become a staple of Touadera's administration since the 2020 uprising by rebel groups.
Russian Influence and the Sidelined Opposition
Opposition figures like Anicet-Georges Dologuele claim the process is a sham. While Touadera held massive, orchestrated rallies in Bangui's stadium, his rivals were barred from flying to provincial regions to meet voters. Dologuele even had his passport seized in mid-October, despite complying with new laws requiring single nationality for candidates.
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