President Alassane Ouattara was declared the winner of a fourth term after the 25 October 2025 election, securing nearly 90% of valid ballots according to official results. The turnout hovered around 50%, and multiple prominent opposition figures were barred from running — developments that have reignited debates about the health of Ivorian democracy. Ouattara, now aged 83, framed his candidacy in terms of continuity and stability, emphasising the economic growth and reconstruction his administration has overseen since 2011. His allies point to infrastructure and cocoa-sector expansions as proof of performance. Yet many young Ivorians disagreed: voices on the ground in Abidjan decried joblessness, rising inequality (poverty rate ~37.5%) and a political system they feel excludes them. One young slam-poet put it bluntly: “You have to be very lucky, or a bit of a magician, to be able to live comfortably.” Critics warned the exclusion of opposition heavyweights (including former President Laurent Gbagbo and banker-turned candidate Tidjane Thiam) undermined the electoral contest. They argue the constitutional reset in 2016, which cleared the way for this term, amounted to institutional engineering of Ouattara’s path. The scale of his result — 89.77% – in a democratic election with a restricted field has raised eyebrows about the competitive nature of the process.Economically, the result carries implications for the wider region. Côte d’Ivoire dominates global cocoa supply (~40+%) and has made significant gold-output gains under Ouattara’s watch. But analysts say investors will now watch whether political certainty translates into inclusive growth, or whether youth disenchantment begins to overshadow the stability narrative.With West Africa facing increasing pressures from jihadist spill-over, the election outcome also puts Abidjan at the heart of regional stability efforts — and raises questions about whether internal legitimacy will now match external strategic weight.
For Ivoirians, the fourth term marks not just continuity but a potential turning point: with Ouattara promising this would be his last, the baton of power may soon pass — but to whom and how remains unclear. Societal stressors, youth alienation and governance concerns now loom larger than the victory itself.
