At Stake in this Election:  

• The Presidency of Djibouti. 

Government Structure: 

• Chief of State: Ismaël Omar GUELLEH (since 8 May 1999) 

• Head of Government: Prime Minister Abdoulkader Kamil MOHAMED (since 31 March 2013) 

• Assembly: unicameral 65-seat National Assembly 

Electoral System: 

• The President is elected via an absolute majority vote in two rounds if necessary. Presidents serve 5-year terms with no term limits.  

• The Prime Minister is appointed by the President. 

• Members of the National Assembly are directly elected to serve 5-year terms. There are no term limits. 

Last Election: 

The last Presidential election was held on April 9, 2021. Ismaël Omar GUELLEH won 97% of the vote and Zakaria Ismael FARAH won 3%. Voter turnout was 76%. 

Information for Voters: 

Élections Présidentielles 2026 — Communiqué Officiel / 2026 Presidential Elections – Official Statement (in French) 

New/Unique in this Election: 

In October of 2025, the National Assembly voted to eliminate the age ceiling for presidential candidates. Additionally, the Assembly voted to remove the requirement that a referendum be held for the adoption of a new constitution, among other changes. 

Key Deadlines: 

• Candidate filing deadline: 11 March 2026 

• Voter registration deadline: 1 April 2026  

Main Candidates in this Election: 

• Ismaël Omar GUELLEH 

• • Party: Union pour la Majorité Présidentille (UMP) 

• Mohamed Farah SAMATAR  

• • Party: Centre Démocrate Unifié Djiboutien (CDU) 

Country Context: 

• Population: 1,168,722 (2024 est.) 

• Registered Voters: 215,687 (2021) 

• V-Dem Electoral Democracy Index Score: 0.2500 (2024) 

• V-Dem Regimes of the World Classification: Electoral Autocracy (2024) 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.513, Low, Rank 175 (2023) 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population: 589,409 (2024 est.) 

• CEDAW Status: Ascended 2 December 1998 

• Gender Quota: Yes, 25% of seats are reserved for women. 

• Female Candidates in this election: No 

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 17 out of 65 (26%) 

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: n/a 

Disability Data: 

• CRPD Status: Ascended 18 June 2012 

• Projected population with a disability: 186,996 (2024 est.)