Government officials and regional leaders in DR Congo barred from elections due to involvement in fraudulent activities and promoting violence

Last month's election in the Democratic Republic of Congo has faced controversy as three ministers and four governors have been disqualified due to fraud and violence. The electoral body has excluded a total of 82 candidates from the legislative, provincial, and local elections. However, the announcement did not address the presidential election, which re-elected President Félix Tshisekedi by a large margin. The opposition has denounced the entire election as a sham and has demanded a rerun, yet only one opposition candidate has taken the matter to court. Many opposition leaders lack trust in the court system and have instead called for protests without specifying a date. The election itself encountered logistical problems, with two-thirds of polling stations opening late and 30% of voting machines malfunctioning on the first day, according to observers. Consequently, millions of voters faced lengthy waits before giving up and going home. The electoral commission cited fraud, corruption, violence against election workers and voters, and equipment vandalism as reasons for disqualifying the 82 candidates. The commission has not commented on their allegations. While the results for the contested elections have not been declared, all votes for the disqualified candidates have been annulled. Out of the 100,000 candidates across all elections, only the result of the presidential race has been announced. Additionally, elections will be canceled in two constituencies, and 16 regions in the east could not vote due to armed group presence in the mineral-rich area. Despite these issues, election chief Denis Kadima has maintained that the presidential result represents the will of the Congolese people. President Tshisekedi, 60, won a second term with 73% of the vote, while his closest competitor, mining magnate and former provincial governor Moise Katumbi, received 18%. Official turnout stood at approximately 43% of the 41 million registered voters. President Tshisekedi is set to be sworn in for his second term on January 20th.