Guinea-Bissau’s ruling military leaders have announced that the country will hold legislative and presidential elections on December 6, 2026, marking the first formal electoral timetable since a coup late last year disrupted the political process. The announcement was made in a presidential decree read by transitional leader Major-General Horta Inta-a, who now heads the military government after the overthrow of President Umaro Sissoco Embaló in November 2025. In the decree, Inta-a stated that “all the conditions for organising free, fair and transparent elections have been met.”
The elections will include both the presidency and the National People’s Assembly, providing a return to constitutional politics after months of uncertainty. In late November 2025, Guinea-Bissau’s military staged a coup just before official results from the country’s presidential and legislative elections were due to be announced, detaining then-President Embaló and suspending the electoral process. The junta, calling itself the High Military Command for the Restoration of Order, declared a one-year transition period and subsequently published a transitional charter. Under that charter, Gen. Inta-a is barred from running in the December election.
The takeover highlighted persistent instability in Guinea-Bissau, a small West African nation that has endured numerous coups since independence from Portugal in 1974. The election date announcement follows diplomatic engagement by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), whose leaders visited Bissau to urge a short and transparent transition back to civilian rule. ECOWAS leaders called for the release of political detainees, including key opponents arrested around the time of the coup, and stressed the importance of credible elections. Although the transitional authorities insist conditions are now in place for credible elections, regional and international observers will closely watch the process given Guinea-Bissau’s history of political volatility.
December’s vote is seen as a critical turning point for Guinea-Bissau’s fragile democracy. If successful, it could mark a peaceful end to the military’s direct rule and usher in renewed civilian leadership after a period of turmoil.
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