DR Congo – Now Africa’s Largest French-Speaking Democracy

Although some media reports forecast that last month’s elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo would be ‘chaotic’ and ‘fraudulent’, preliminary reports by several international observers concluded that the process met the standards to be considered free and fair, according to the U.S.-based The Forum of Congolese Intellectuals of Abroad (FICE), which deployed an observer team to monitor the voting. On December 31, the final vote tallies announced in Kinshasa by the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) showed current President Felix Tshisekedi with almost 74 percent of the vote. While the Constitutional Court still has to adjudicate any complaint about the results, this may only be a formality since given Tshisekedi’s lead, it is clear that he will be the first ever Congolese President to be democratically elected for a second term.

FICE was one of several Western, African, and Congolese entities certified by the Independent Commission for National Elections (CENI) of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to observe the December 20th general elections (presidential, national, provincial, and local legislative elections) in the country. In an analysis, Professor Dr. Ngoie Joel Nshisso and Mr. Stephen Lande conclude that the elections « met the standards to be considered free and fair. » despite protests by Tshisekedi’s opponents contesting the results. « Tshisedeki was reelected mainly due to his record and his efforts, » the authors argue. « World attention should now focus on working with the Tshisekedi Administration to make sure that the term is a success, » they write. « The DRC needs it, Africa needs it, and the world needs it. »