Congo Brazaville leader secures landslide win to extend 42-year rule amid internet outage

President Denis Sassou N’Guesso has secured a fifth consecutive term after winning 94.82 per cent of the vote in Tuesday’s election, according to North Shore News.

Interior Minister Raymond Zephirin Mboulou announced the results on state television, detailing how the octogenarian leader of the oil-rich Central African nation defeated six challengers.

Authorities reported an 84.65 per cent voter turnout, with 2.6 million ballots cast, although polling stations in Brazzaville recorded low turnout.

Residents expressed doubts about the prospects for change, with internet access cut nationwide and traffic restricted in the capital, measures that are typical during elections in the country.

Mabio Mavoungou Zinga of the Alliance party finished second with 1.48 per cent of the vote, followed by independent candidate Uphrem Dave Mafoula at 1.03 per cent. The remaining candidates each garnered less than 1 per cent. The results are pending approval by the Constitutional Court.

“By re-electing me in a landslide, the people have kept their word. Now we must keep ours,” Sassou N’Guesso said at the Congolese Party of Labour headquarters.

The veteran politician also praised the “civic-mindedness” and “patriotism” of voters.

Sassou N’Guesso first seized power in 1979 and ruled until the introduction of multiparty elections in 1992. He returned to power in 1997 as a militia commander following a civil war.

His campaign dominated the political landscape, with roads in Brazzaville lined with his posters, while opposition efforts were largely constrained.

Two major parties boycotted the vote, citing unfair practices linked to a 2015 referendum that removed presidential term and age limits.

The victory reinforces a broader pattern of long-serving African leaders retaining power, with Sassou N’Guesso ranking among the continent’s longest-ruling heads of state, behind Cameroon’s Paul Biya and Equatorial Guinea’s Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo.

According to Bermuda Today, defeated candidates have five days to file petitions, while the Constitutional Court has 15 days to review any challenges before announcing final results.

The country continues to face economic strain, with World Bank data showing public debt at 94.5 per cent of GDP. Youth unemployment remains high, and more than half of the country’s 5.7 million people live in poverty.