Cameroon’s Constitutional Council today officially declared incumbent President Paul Biya, the world’s oldest head of state, the winner of the October 12 presidential election, securing an eighth term that extends his rule into its fifth decade. He’s been president for 43 years.
The announcement, delivered by Clément Atangana, the president of the Constitutional Council, confirmed the 92-year-old leader won the single-ballot poll with 53.66% of the vote. This victory potentially keeps him in office until he is nearly 100 years old.
The declaration comes at a moment of severe national tension, as the results announcement was preceded by deadly clashes between security forces and opposition supporters who took to the streets across major cities, alleging widespread electoral fraud.
According to the Constitutional Council, the official tally placed Biya, the candidate for the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (RDPC), well ahead of his closest rival, Issa Tchiroma Bakary.
Tchiroma Bakary, a former government ally and minister who broke ranks with Biya earlier this year to mount an opposition campaign, secured 35.19% of the vote. Tchiroma, who heads the Front for the National Salvation of Cameroon (FSNC), had preemptively claimed victory days after the poll, calling on the long-serving president to concede defeat—a claim the ruling party immediately dismissed.
The election results follow Biya’s decision to run for re-election after a 2008 constitutional amendment abolished term limits, allowing him to continuously seek office. Biya has led the central African nation since assuming the presidency in 1982.
