Cameroon’s Paul Biya, 92, Re-elected President for the eighth time

Monday 27 October 2025 - 13:00

By: Sahili Aya

Cameroon’s Paul Biya, 92, Re-elected President for the eighth time

Cameroon’s long-serving leader Paul Biya, aged 92, has been re-elected for an eighth term as president, according to official results announced Monday by the country’s Constitutional Council. Biya, who has ruled since 1982, won 53.66% of the vote in the October 12 election, maintaining his position as the world’s oldest sitting head of state.

His closest rival, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, received 35.19%, though he has contested the results, claiming victory and calling on his supporters to “defend their votes.”

Protests erupted in Douala, the country’s economic capital, on Sunday, resulting in four deaths, according to regional authorities. Security forces reportedly used tear gas and later opened fire with live ammunition to disperse demonstrators supporting Tchiroma.

Biya, the second president in Cameroon’s history since its independence from France in 1960, has consolidated power over more than four decades. Critics accuse him of having rigged the political system to ensure his continued rule, repressing dissent and opposition.

Despite ongoing economic challenges and an armed separatist conflict in the country’s English-speaking regions since 2016, Biya has remained firmly in control of the nation’s political landscape.

Analysts say his re-election underscores the resilience of his deeply entrenched regime, one that has survived coups, social unrest, and shifting international alliances.