Ivorian opposition seeks unified stance on future electoral governance
Several major Ivorian opposition parties convened on Tuesday, September 1, 2026, at the headquarters of the African Peoples' Party – Côte d'Ivoire PPA-CI to unify their position on the country's future electoral governance. Attendees included representatives from Pascal Affi N'Guessan's FPI, Simone Ehivet Gbagbo's MGC, Assalé Tiémoko's ADCI, and Charles Blé Goudé's COJEP, who met with leaders of Laurent Gbagbo's PPA-CI. The primary goal is to harmonize their demands before submitting a single document to the government, especially as the country has been without an electoral institution since the dissolution of the Independent Electoral Commission CEI on May 6. A key proposal under discussion is Simone Ehivet Gbagbo's June 18 suggestion to establish a "High Electoral Council." This council would exclude political party and government representatives from managing elections and would be granted strict financial autonomy to ensure its independence. This initiative by the opposition is a direct response to the project presented on June 22 by Prime Minister Robert Beugré Mambé, which favors an electoral structure divided into three distinct bodies: one for material organization, one for vote tabulation, and a third for overall process supervision.
