2026 presidential election in Benin: further postponement in naming the Démocrates’ candidate duo
There’s still no white smoke. The designation of the party Les Démocrates’ presidential ticket for the April 2026 election has been postponed again, prolonging a suspense already well established in Beninese politics.
SUMMARY
Originally scheduled for Saturday, October 11, the National Council meeting was to be rescheduled for Sunday, October 12. But, to everyone’s surprise, it was postponed once more.
According to a statement by the party’s national communications secretary, Guy Mitopkè, published Saturday night on his Facebook page, the meeting will finally be held on Monday, October 13 in Abomey-Calavi.
“The National Council is postponed to Monday, October 13,” he simply wrote, without further details.
A decisive step in a process started in late September
This National Council meeting is the final stage of a selection process that began at the end of September.
A selection committee for the presidential ticket was first set up, before the official call for applications was launched on September 28 and closed on October 4.
A total of 34 applications were registered, examined and then interviewed by the committee. At the end of the deliberations, the final report was sent to the party president, Boni Yayi, on Saturday, October 11, on the eve of the first scheduled meeting date.
This report will be presented on Monday to the National Council, a body made up of the High Council, the National Coordination (90 members), one representative per electoral district (24 members) and one representative per commune (77 members). It is this body that is responsible for ratifying the party’s presidential ticket.
An electoral calendar under pressure
This postponement comes as the electoral calendar accelerates. The period for filing candidacies with the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENA) runs from October 10 to 14, 2025.
As of Saturday, October 11, no dossier had yet been officially registered, neither from the party Les Démocrates nor from the presidential camp.
Likely candidates from the ruling movement, including Romuald Wadagni, as well as those from the opposition led by Paul Hounkpè, had not yet formalized their candidacies with the CENA.
Needless to say, the next 48 hours will be decisive: between Sunday the 12th and Tuesday the 14th, the main political forces will have to file their dossiers to meet the legal deadline.
The presidential election itself is set for April 12, 2026, but already political signals reflect the intensity of bargaining and strategic calculations around forming the tickets.
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