The Democratic Union of Builders (UDB), the ruling party created earlier this year by President Brice Oligui Nguema, has emerged as the frontrunner in Gabon’s first legislative elections since the 2023 coup that ended the Bongo dynasty’s five-decade rule. According to official results, the UDB secured 55 out of 145 seats in the National Assembly after the first round of voting. In contrast, the once dominant Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG), led by ousted President Ali Bongo Ondimba, managed to capture only three seats, though both parties shared four others under joint candidacies.
A decisive second round will be held on October 11, with 77 constituencies still up for grabs most of them battlegrounds between the UDB and the PDG. The vote is being closely watched as Gabon seeks to transition back to constitutional order. After seizing power in 2023, Gen. Oligui Nguema introduced a new electoral code that restored a presidential system and permitted military figures, including himself, to contest elections. He went on to win the presidency in April 2024.
Although Gabon’s parliament wields limited authority under the current system, analysts say the legislative outcome will shape the balance of power and test the credibility of Nguema’s promises of democratic renewal after decades of Bongo family dominance.
