Guinea — Bissau Sets Election Date Following Last Year’s Coup. Bissau, Guinea-Bissau — The military government of Guinea-Bissau has announced the date for new legislative and presidential elections, scheduled for December 6, 2026. This comes after the November 2023 coup that ousted President Umaro Sissoco Embalo and installed former army chief of staff Major-General Horta Inta-a as the head of the military government, tasked with overseeing a one-year transition period.
According to a decree read by Major — General Horta Inta-a, all conditions for organizing free, fair, and transparent elections have been met.
The transitional charter, published in early December, bars Inta — a, a close associate of Embalo, from running for election.
The military claimed that it seized power as Embalo was seeking a second term to “avoid a bloodbath between supporters of the rival candidates.”.
Guinea — Bissau, known for its political instability and coups since gaining independence from Portugal over 50 years ago, has been a hub for drug trafficking between Latin America and Europe, a trend experts say has exacerbated its political crises.
The country, with a population of 2. 2 million, has been struggling with economic challenges and is considered one of the poorest in the world.
The election announcement follows a visit to Guinea — Bissau by an Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) mission led by Sierra Leonean President and ECOWAS chair Julius Maada Bio and his Senegalese counterpart Bassirou Diomaye Faye.
The two leaders held talks with the military leaders and called for a short, structured, and transparent transition. They also demanded the release of political opponents, including opposition leader Domingos Simoes Pereira, who were imprisoned on the day of the coup.
West Africa has seen a wave of coups since 2020, typically with the stated purpose of protecting the country against insurgencies or fixing bad governance.
Military leaders in Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso also took power by force on pledges of providing more security to citizens against extremist armed groups. Further details are expected as the country moves towards the scheduled elections.
*Additional reporting by ImNews | Sources consulted: 5*
