The longtime ruler, in energy since 1999, has secured 97 % of the vote, in response to official outcomes.
Revealed On 11 Apr 2026
Djibouti’s longtime President Ismail Omar Guelleh has claimed a landslide victory within the nation’s newest elections, ushering in his sixth consecutive time period within the Horn of Africa nation.
Guelleh secured 97.81 % of the votes cast on Friday, in response to official outcomes printed by Djibouti’s state-run information company.
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His sole opponent, Mohamed Farah Samatar, earned simply 2.19 % of votes.
Samatar’s Unified Democratic Centre (CDU) opposition celebration has no seats in parliament, and he struggled to realize recognition forward of the polls.
“Reelected,” Guelleh, 78, wrote on X as early outcomes arrived.
Politicians final 12 months eliminated presidential age limits, permitting him to hunt one other 5 years in energy.
Voter turnout was 80.4 % on Friday, in response to Djibouti media retailers. Roughly 1 / 4 of the inhabitants – about 256,000 individuals – have been registered to vote.
Guelleh has dominated Djibouti’s inhabitants of roughly a million since 1999.
Neighbouring Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia, the nation is strategically located on the Bab al-Mandeb strait, which supplies entry to the Pink Sea from the Gulf of Aden.
“By the grace of God, we’ve arrived right here, and we hope that this may finish in victory,” Guelleh advised reporters as he voted at Djibouti’s Metropolis Corridor at about noon on Friday.
Initially scheduled to shut at 6pm native time (15:00 GMT), polls as an alternative remained open for one more hour to account for delays.
Little competitors
At the same time as voters turned of their ballots on Friday, few doubted who would win.
1000’s had gathered at Guelleh’s marketing campaign rallies forward of the election, whereas his posters could possibly be seen plastered throughout the capital.
In distinction, just some dozen individuals have been current at one in every of Samatar’s marketing campaign occasions broadcast by state media, the AFP information company reported.
Nonetheless, he rallied within the Tadjourah and Obock areas beneath the tagline that “one other Djibouti is feasible”.
Deka Aden Mohamed, 38, advised AFP on Friday that he deliberate to vote for Guelleh.
“I don’t even know what his opponent appears to be like like,” he added.
Guelleh’s most up-to-date victory in 2021 noticed him take 98 % of votes. Two of the nation’s primary opposition events have boycotted elections since 2016, after Guelleh did away with time period limits in 2010.
For years, human rights teams have accused authorities authorities of repressing freedom of speech and political exercise – costs that the federal government has rejected.
