Gabon’s president’s party wins most seats in first legislative elections since 2023 coup

LIBREVILLE, Gabon (AP) — The party of Gabon’s president Tuesday won the most seats in the first round of the country’s first legislative elections since a 2023 military coup ended a 50-year-old political dynasty.

The Democratic Union of Builders, or UDB, a party founded in July by Gabon’s leader Gen. Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, won 55 of the 145 seats in the National Assembly, according to provisional results released by the Interior Ministry.

The Gabonese Democratic Party, or PDG, the party of former president Ali Bongo Ondimba, won three seats. The UDB and PDG, running on a joint ticket in some constituencies, won four seats.

Oligui Nguema had toppled Bongo, who was accused of irresponsible governance, in a 2023 coup, and in April won the presidential election that signaled a return to constitutional democracy.

A second round election is set for Oct. 11 in 77 constituencies where no candidate won an absolute majority, most of them pitting the UDB against the PDG.

The country is ruled by a presidential system under the constitution adopted by referendum last year. The legislative power is limited and parliament cannot topple the government.

Gabon’s parliament had also adopted a contentious new electoral code earlier this year, which allowed military personnel, including Oligui Nguema, to run in the April presidential vote.