I.   INTRODUCTION

At the invitation of the Government of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC), His Excellency Mr. Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, on the proposal of the Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security (CAPPS) of the African Union (AU), His Excellency Ambassador Bankole ADEOYE, deployed a short-term Election Observation Mission (EOM) to the Republic of Guinea-Bissau to observe the 23 November 2025 General Elections (presidential and legislative).

The Mission arrived in Guinea-Bissau on 20 November and will remain on the ground until 29 November 2025.

It is led by H.E. Mr. Filipe Jacinto Nyusi, former President of the Republic of Mozambique, supported by the Honourable Judge Effie Owuor, member of the AU Panel of the Wise, and His Excellency, Mr. (H) Ovidio Manuel Barbosa Pequeno, Special Representative of the Chairperson of the AU Commission in Guinea-Bissau.

The Mission comprises 36 short-term observers amongst them ambassadors accredited to the African Union in Addis Ababa, Pan-African Parliamentarians, members of Election Management Bodies (EMBs), representatives of African Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), and electoral experts from 20 African Union (AU) Member States1.

The Mission's assessment is based on Guinea-Bissau’s legal framework for elections, as well as key international and continental instruments, including:

• The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR);
• The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR);
• The Declaration of Principles on International Election Observation;
• The African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance (ACDEG);
• Aspiration 3 of Agenda 2063;
• The Constitution, laws and regulations of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau.

II. OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY OF THE MISSION

The objectives of the AUEOM are to: assess the compliance of the 2025 electoral process in line with AU principles, normative frameworks and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections, as well as Guinea-Bissau’s national legal framework; ascertain that the environment was peaceful for the conduct of democratic elections that will engender acceptance of the electoral outcomes;

assess the level of preparedness of the electoral commission and other electoral institutions; offer recommendations for improvement of future elections, and demonstrate the AU’s solidarity and support for Guinea Bissau’s democratic and electoral processes to ensure that the conduct of genuine elections will contribute to the consolidation of peace and stability, and promote inclusive development in the country.

Before their deployment throughout the country, AUEOM observers were briefed on the political and pre-electoral context, as well as on the methodology for collecting and transmitting election day data.

The Mission observed the final days of the election campaign, and the various operations on election day.

On 23 November, the Mission deployed 20 teams of 36 observers to nine regions to observe the Election Day process (including opening, voting, closing, and counting).

This preliminary statement is based on the overall assessment of the election day, the close of polls, and the early stages of results tabulation. Recognising that the electoral process is still ongoing, this statement does not constitute the overall or final assessment of the electoral process. The Mission will release a final detailed report within two months.

The Mission will continue to monitor the immediate post-election environment, including the results management process and the resolution of electoral disputes, if any. It will publish its final report outlining detailed findings and recommendations and key lessons.

III. PRELIMINARY FINDINGS

Based on its assessment, the Mission made the following preliminary findings:

A. POLITICAL CONTEXT OF THE 2025 GENERAL ELECTIONS

The AUEOM noted the resilience demonstrated by Guinea-Bissau through the completion of its five-year presidential term and the effective organisation of elections.

However, the Mission observed that the 23 November General Elections were prepared and organised in a context marked by political divisions and disagreements over the date of the presidential election, the dissolution of the National People's Assembly in December 2023, restrictions on civic and political space, and a lack of consensus between the government and the opposition on the political and operational modalities of the electoral process.

The Mission also noted the absence of the historic party, the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC), and its candidate from this competition. The Mission was informed of the Supreme Court's rejection of the PAIGC candidate's nomination.

The dissolution of the National People's Assembly before the end of its term, which was due to end in 2027, deprived the country of parliamentary representation and legislation, leading to early legislative elections in November 2025, held concurrently with the presidential election.

The Mission noted that the mandate of the members of the Executive Secretariat of the National Electoral Commission (CNE) expired in 2022. The current CNE also organised the legislative elections of June 2023. The Mission was informed that political actors could not reach a compromise on the appointment of a new team to head the CNE ahead of the November 2025 elections.

Despite these challenges, the Mission noted the absence of calls for a boycott, demonstrating the commitment of Guinea-Bissau's political class to consolidating the country's democratic progress.

The Mission noted that 12 candidates were running in the presidential election, and 14 political parties and platforms were competing for the 102 seats in the National Assembly.

B. LEGAL AND ELECTORAL FRAMEWORK

Presidential and legislative elections in the Republic of Guinea-Bissau are governed by a set of constitutional, legislative, and regulatory texts that establish the conditions required for conducting the elections. The Mission noted that the electoral law has been amended to improve the electoral process.

The President of the Republic is elected through an absolute majority system; thus, a candidate must secure at least 50% plus one of the votes to be declared the winner, as provided for by Article 101 of the Electoral Law.

For the National Assembly, the country uses proportional representation (PR), which allocates seats in proportion to the votes obtained by each party or coalition of parties.

C. VOTER REGISTRATION

For the 2025 General Elections, the national electoral register and voter registration update took place from 9 March to 6 June 2025. Following the update, the Technical Office of the Electoral Process Support (GTAPE) announced an electoral register comprising 966,152 voters, including 477,272 (49.40%) men and 488,880 (50.60%)

women, of whom 914,428 (94.65%) reside in Guinea-Bissau and 52,724 (5.35%) reside abroad.

The Mission noted the inclusion of 72,534 new voters in the National Electoral Register (NER), which comprised 893,618 registered voters in 2023.

D. ELECTION PREPARATIONS

Law No. 12/2013 of 27 December 2013 provides for the establishment of the National Electoral Commission (NEC) as an independent body. Its mandate is to organise, supervise, and manage elections in the Republic of Guinea-Bissau. It is responsible for ensuring the transparency and credibility of the electoral process and reports to the National People's Assembly.

The Mission noted that the NEC demonstrated efficiency in deploying electoral materials to the 290 polling stations it observed.

The AUEOM was informed that the government has financed the 2025 elections using its own funds. The Mission welcomes the efforts of the government to fund the electoral process within a fragile economic context.

E. VOTING AND ELECTION DAY OBSERVATION

The AUEOM deployed 36 observers paired in 20 teams to observe nine regions across the Republic of Guinea-Bissau. They visited a total of 290 polling stations on Election Day where they observed opening, voting and closing and counting procedures. 60% of the stations were in urban and 40% in rural areas.

1. Opening of polling stations

The AUEOM observed opening procedures in 20 polling stations. 87% of the stations observed opened on time and the relevant opening procedures were followed. The delays at 13% of the stations visited did not exceed 30 minutes.

The AUEOM noted that materials were delivered in advance in all polling stations visited and were in sufficient quantities.

Security officials were present in all stations visited and they acted professionally and discreetly.

Accessibility remained a concern, with 10% of stations assessed not easily accessible to Persons with Disabilities largely because of unlevelled ground.

The Mission notes that most (93 %) of the polling stations were accessible to persons with disabilities, demonstrating efforts towards promoting active participation and inclusion of vulnerable groups in governance and elections.

2. Voting process

a. General environment of polling stations

The atmosphere in all polling centres visited on Election Day was peaceful.

The Mission noted a visible presence of security personnel outside all the polling stations visited from opening to closing and counting. Their presence was observed to be professional and discreet in all the stations visited by the Mission.

In 81% of the station visited vulnerable groups like the persons with disabilities, the aged, expectant and nursing mothers were given priority while in 19% of cases, they were not prioritised.

Finally, the AUEOM notes that the voting process proceeded uninterrupted throughout the day. Voting procedures were adhered to in all polling stations visited.

b. Transparency

Party and candidate agents were present in all PSs visited and international observer groups were also in 89 PSs visited. The agents were able to carry out their mission without restriction or hindrance.

c. Compliance with procedures

In 91% of the PSs observed, the ballot boxes were sealed in accordance with procedures.
Voters’ identification checked against the voter register in 97% of the PSs visited. Those who were at the wrong polling stations were redirected to their PSs.
Voters’ finger was marked with indelible ink according to the procedure in all the PSs visited.

The secrecy of the vote was guaranteed by the appropriate lay-out of all polling stations visited which ensured the privacy of the ballot.

d. Electoral Participation

The AUEOM commends the participation of women and youth as voters, election staff, and representatives of parties and candidates.

Women constitute 50.60% of registered voters. However, the Mission noted the absence of any female candidates for the Presidential election.

Until its dissolution in 2023, the National People's Assembly had 10 female members out of 102, representing approximately 10%.

The AU Mission noted with satisfaction the active participation of women in the management of polling stations, where they constituted 53% of election staff and 43% of delegates from candidates and parties/platforms.

In most of the polling stations visited, women served as secretaries or poll workers. The Mission welcomed the presence of several women presiding over polling stations.

e. Closing and counting

AU observers noted that polling stations closed on time in all the PSs visited. No queues were reported at the time of closing.

The AUEOM noted that ballot reconciliation was done at the polling station at the end of the process.
Observers reported that counting at polling stations progressed efficiently though slowly in a few stations.
Party and candidate agents were provided with copies of the result sheets for their record-keeping purposes.

F. Conclusion and Recommendations

a. Conclusion

The AUEOM observes that the 23 November 2025 General Elections constituted a significant test of the resilience of the people of Guinea-Bissau. The Mission commends the determination demonstrated by voters and the political class, who participated peacefully despite challenges noted in certain areas.

The Mission encourages all candidates and political parties to adhere to the established legal and institutional mechanisms for the resolution of any electoral disputes and reaffirms its commitment to continue observing the process in accordance with the AU principles and guidelines governing democratic elections.

Despite challenges mentioned above, the AUEOM concludes that the process has complied with the principles and guidelines governing democratic election in the AU and other International Standards on democratic elections.

While awaiting for the release of Preliminary results by the CNE the Mission calls on all stakeholders to remain calm, peaceful and to abide by the relevant laws and refrain from any action or pronouncements that would undermine the integrity of the process and the peaceful atmosphere that prevailed during the campaign and the Election Day in the post-election period.

b. Recommendations

In support of Guinea Bissau’s objective to further strengthen its electoral processes,
the AUEOM outlines the following preliminary recommendations:

To the Government:

• Continue dialogue efforts to build consensus among political actors on political and electoral governance.
• Take the necessary measures for the effective implementation of quotas to promote women's political participation and increase their representation at all levels of public life.

To the National Electoral Commission:

• Continue pursuing initiatives that promote the participation of women, youth, and persons with disabilities in electoral operations to strengthen the inclusiveness of electoral processes.
• Strengthen the capacity of electoral staff to consolidate their skills and ensure a credible election.
• Adopt disaggregated electoral statistics that take into account age and persons with disabilities in the National Electoral Roll (FEN);
• Set up ramps at polling stations to make polling stations more accessible to vulnerable groups, including persons with disabilities;
• Gradually include the use of technology in the electoral process.

To Political Parties:

• Actively support and promote female candidates, ensuring equitable representation in candidate lists and leadership positions.

To the international community:

• Support the government in implementing the legislative and electoral reforms that will result from the newly elected National Assembly, with a view to strengthening governance and stabilising the political system in Guinea-Bissau.

COMMENTS