Politics of Gabon

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{{One source|date=January 2019}}
{{Politics of Gabon}}
The politics of [[Gabon]] takes place in a framework of a republic whereby the [[president of Gabon]] is [[head of state]] and in effect, also the [[head of government]], since he appoints the [[Prime Minister of Gabon|prime minister]] and his cabinet. The government is divided into three branches: the [[Executive (management)|executive]] headed by the prime minister (although previously held by the president), the [[legislative]] which is formed by the two chambers of parliament, and the [[judicial]] branch. The judicial branch is technically independent and equal to the two other branches, although in practice, since the president appoints its judges, it is beholden to the same president. Since independence, the party system has been dominated by the conservative [[Gabonese Democratic Party]].
[[Image:Omar Bongo crop.jpg|thumb|Former President [[Omar Bongo]] Ondimba]] In March 1991, a new constitution was adopted. Among its provisions are a Western-style [[bill of rights]], the creation of the National Council of Democracy that also oversees the guarantee of those rights and a governmental advisory board which deals with economic and social issues. Multi-party legislative elections were held in 1990-91 even though opposition parties were not declared formally legal.

==Political developments==
Under the 1961 [[Constitution of Gabon|constitution]] (revised in 1975 and rewritten in 1991), Gabon became a [[republic]] with a [[President of Gabon|presidential]] form of government. The [[National Assembly of Gabon]] has 120 deputies elected for five years. The president is elected by [[universal suffrage]] for a seven-year term. The president appoints the [[Prime Minister of Gabon|prime minister]], the [[Cabinet (government)|cabinet]], and [[judge]]s of the independent [[Supreme court]]. The government 1990 made major changes in the political system. A transitional constitution was drafted in May as an outgrowth of a national political conference in March–April and later revised by a constitutional committee. Among its provisions were a [[Western world#Western thought|Western]]-style [[bill of rights]]; creation of a [[National Council of Democracy]], which oversees the guarantee of those rights; a governmental advisory board on economic and social issues; and an independent [[judiciary]]. After approval by the National Assembly, the PDG Central Committee, and the president, the Assembly unanimously adopted the constitution in March 1991. Multi-party legislative elections were held in 1990-91, although opposition parties were not declared formally legal.

After a peaceful transition, the elections produced the first representative, [[Multi-party system|multi-party]], National Assembly. In January 1991, the Assembly passed by unanimous vote a law governing the legalization of opposition parties. The president was re-elected in a disputed election in 1993 with 51% of the votes cast. Social and political disturbances led to the 1994 [[Paris Conference and Accords]], which provided a framework for the next elections. Local and legislative elections were delayed until 1996–1997. In 1997, [[constitutional amendment]]s were adopted to create an appointed [[Senate of Gabon|Senate]], the position of [[Vice President of Gabon|Vice President]], and to extend the president's term to seven years. Facing a divided opposition, President [[Omar Bongo]] was re-elected in December 1998, with 66% of the votes cast. Although the main opposition parties claimed the elections had been manipulated, there was none of the [[Civil disobedience|civil disturbance]] that followed the 1993 election. The president retains strong powers, such as the authority to dissolve the National Assembly, declare a state of siege, delay legislation, conduct referendums, and appoint and dismiss the prime minister and cabinet members. For administrative purposes, Gabon is divided into nine [[province]]s, which are further divided into 36 [[prefecture]]s and eight separate [[subprefecture]]s. The president appoints the provincial [[governor]]s, the prefects, and the subprefects.

==Political conditions==
At the time of [[History of Gabon|Gabon's independence]] in 1960, two principal political parties existed: the [[Bloc Democratique Gabonais]] (BDG), led by [[Leon M'Ba]], and the [[Union Démocratique et Sociale Gabonaise]] (UDSG), led by [[Jean-Hilaire Aubame]]. In the first post-independence election, held under a parliamentary system, neither party was able to win a majority. The BDG obtained support from three of the four independent legislative deputies, and M'Ba was named prime minister. Soon after concluding that Gabon had an insufficient number of people for a [[two-party system]], the two party leaders agreed on a single list of candidates. In the February 1961 election, held under the new presidential system, M'Ba became president and Aubame foreign minister.

This coalition appeared to work until February 1963, when the larger BDG forced the UDSG members to choose between a merger of the parties or resignation. The UDSG cabinet ministers resigned, and M'Ba called an election for February 1964 and a reduced number of National Assembly deputies (from 67 to 47). The UDSG failed to muster a list of candidates able to meet the requirements of the electoral decrees. When the BDG appeared likely to win the election by default, the [[Military of Gabon|Gabonese military]] toppled M'Ba in a bloodless coup on February 18, 1964. [[Military of France|French troops]] re-established his government the next day. Elections were held in April with many opposition participants. BDG-supported candidates won 31 seats and the opposition 16. Late in 1966, the constitution was revised to provide for automatic succession of the vice president should the president die in office. In March 1967, Leon M'Ba and Omar Bongo (then Albert Bongo) were elected president and vice president. M'Ba died later that year, and Omar Bongo became president.

In March 1968, Bongo declared Gabon a one-party state by dissolving the BDG and establishing a new party—the [[Gabonese Democratic Party]]. He invited all Gabonese, regardless of previous political affiliation, to participate. Bongo was elected president in February 1975 and re-elected in December 1979 and November 1986 to seven-year terms. In April 1975, the office of vice president was abolished and replaced by the office of prime minister, who had no right to automatic succession. Under the 1991 constitution, in the event of the president's death, the prime minister, the National Assembly president, and the defence minister share power until a new election is held. Using the PDG as a tool to submerge the regional and tribal rivalries that have divided Gabonese politics in the past, Bongo sought to forge a single national movement in support of the government's development policies.

Opposition to the PDG continued, however, and in September 1990, two coup attempts were uncovered and aborted. Economic discontent and a desire for political liberalization provoked violent demonstrations and strikes by students and workers in early 1990. In response to grievances by workers, Bongo negotiated with them on a sector-by-sector basis, making significant wage concessions. In addition, he promised to open up the PDG and organize a national political conference in March–April 1990 to discuss Gabon's future political system. The PDG and 74 political organizations attended the conference. Participants essentially divided into two loose coalitions, the ruling PDG and its allies and the United Front of Opposition Associations and Parties, consisting of the breakaway Morena Fundamental and the Gabonese Progress Party.

The April conference approved sweeping political reforms, including the creation of a national senate, decentralization of the [[budget]]ary process, freedom of assembly and press, and cancellation of the [[Visa (document)#Exit visas|exit visa]] requirement. In an attempt to guide the political system's transformation into a multi-party democracy, Bongo resigned as PDG chairman and created a transitional government headed by a new Prime Minister, Casimir Oye-Mba. The Gabonese Social Democratic Grouping (RSDG), as the resulting government was called, was smaller than the previous government and included representatives from several opposition parties in its cabinet. The RSDG drafted a provisional constitution that provided a basic bill of rights and an independent judiciary but retained strong executive powers for the president. After further review by a constitutional committee and the National Assembly, this document came into force in March 1991.

Despite further anti-government demonstrations after the untimely death of an opposition leader, the first multi-party National Assembly elections in almost 30 years took place in September–October 1990, with the PDG garnering a large majority. Following President Bongo's re-election in December 1993 with 51% of the vote, opposition candidates refused to validate the election results. Serious civil disturbances, which were heavily repressed by the presidential guard, led to an agreement between the government and opposition factions to work toward a political settlement. These talks led to the Paris Accords in November 1994, in which several opposition figures were included in a government of national unity. This arrangement soon broke down, and the 1996 and 1997 legislative and municipal elections provided the background for renewed partisan politics. The PDG won a landslide victory in the legislative election, but several major cities, including [[Libreville]], elected opposition mayors during the 1997 local election. President Bongo coasted to an easy re-election in December 1998 with 66% of the vote against a divided opposition. While Bongo's major opponents rejected the outcome as fraudulent, international observers characterized the result as representative, even if the election suffered from serious administrative problems. There was no serious civil disorder or protests following the election, in contrast to the 1993 election.

President Omar Ali Bongo narrowly beat rival Jean Ping in the official results of the presidential election in 2016. With results showing a trend of success for Ping, the final province's results were released after significant delays, showing a remarkable 99.5% support for President Bongo in Haut-Ogooue. This was conveniently just enough to push Ali Bongo into first place. An EU Election Observation Mission present in the country declared that observers had incurred problems accessing the process of vote counting. The right to demonstrate or express oneself was described by the mission as 'restrictive'. The electoral regulations benefitted President Bongo, according to the Mission's report.<ref>{{Cite web| title=Conclusions préliminaires | url=https://eeas.europa.eu/sites/eeas/files/declaration_preliminaire_29.08.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160910024355/http://eeas.europa.eu:80/sites/eeas/files/declaration_preliminaire_29.08.pdf | archive-date=2016-09-10}}</ref>

On 31 August 2023, army officers who [[2023 Gabonese coup d'état|seized power]], ending the Bongo family's 55-year hold on power, named Gen Brice Oligui Nguema as the country's transitional leader.<ref>{{cite news |title=Gabon coup leaders name Gen Brice Oligui Nguema as new leader |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-66666585 |work=BBC News |date=31 August 2023}}</ref> On 4 September 2023, General Nguema was sworn in as interim president of Gabon.<ref>{{cite news |title=Gabon coup leader Brice Nguema vows free elections - but no date |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-66705693 |work=BBC News |date=4 September 2023}}</ref> The [[2024 Gabon constitutional referendum|October 2024 Gabon constitutional referendum]] is the next development.

==Executive branch==
{{office-table}}
|[[President of Gabon|President]]
|[[Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema]]
|[[Independent politician|Independent]]
|30 August 2023
|-
|[[Prime Minister of Gabon|Prime Minister]]
|[[Raymond Ndong Sima]]
|[[Independent politician|Independent]]
|7 September 2023
|}
The president is elected by popular vote for a seven-year term. He appoints the prime minister. The Council of Ministers is appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the president.
President [[Omar Bongo|El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba]], in power since 1967 and the longest-serving African head of state, was re-elected to another seven-year term according to poll results returned from elections held on [[2005 Gabonese presidential election|November 27, 2005]]. According to figures provided by Gabon's Interior Ministry, this was achieved with 79.1% of the votes cast. In 2003, the President amended the [[Constitution of Gabon]] to remove any restrictions on the number of terms a president is allowed to serve. The president retains strong powers, such as the authority to dissolve the National Assembly, declare a state of siege, delay legislation, conduct referendums, and appoint and dismiss the prime minister and cabinet members.

==Legislative branch==
The [[Parliament of Gabon|Parliament]] (''Parlement'') has two [[bicameralism|chambers]]. The [[National Assembly of Gabon|National Assembly]] (''Assemblée Nationale'') has 120 members, 111 members elected for a five-year term in single-seat [[constituency|constituencies]] and nine members appointed by a [[head of state]] - the [[President of Gabon|president]]. The [[Senate of Gabon|Senate]] (''Sénat'') has 91 members, elected for a six-year term in single-seat constituencies by local and departmental councillors.

==Political parties and elections==
{{elect|List of political parties in Gabon|Elections in Gabon}}

==Judicial branch==
Gabon's [[Supreme court|Supreme Court]] or ''Cour Supreme'' consists of three chambers - Judicial, Administrative, and Accounts; [[Constitutional Court of Gabon|Constitutional Court]]; Courts of Appeal; Court of State Security; County Courts

==Administrative divisions==
{{main|Subdivisions of Gabon}}
There are nine provincial administrations. These are headquartered in Estuaire, Haut-Ogooue, Moyen-Ogooue, Ngounie, [[Nyanga (province)|Nyanga]], [[Ogooué-Ivindo]], [[Ogooué-Lolo]], Ogooue-Maritime and Woleu-Ntem.

==References==
{{Reflist}}
* ''Original text of this article from [[Central Intelligence Agency]] World Factbook at https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/gabon/''

{{Politics of Africa}}
{{Gabon topics}}

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Politics of Gabon