Cameroon Bans Main Opposition Leader from Upcoming Election

Author: Vera Rousseff

July 31, 2025

HRRC condemns the decision made by Cameroon’s electoral commission to ban opposition leader Maurice Kamto from running in the upcoming election. Allowing opposition parties to run in free and fair elections is a vital part of the democratic process.

Maurice Kamto, a presidential candidate of Renaissance Movement (MRC), walks with his staff after his news conference at his headquarter in Yaounde, Cameroon October 8, 2018. [Image credit: REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra]

Cameroon’s electoral commission, ELECAM, announced on Saturday that Maurice Kamto, the country’s main opposition candidate, would be barred from the upcoming presidential election.

Kamto is considered to be the strongest challenger to Cameroon’s current president, Paul Biya, who has been in power for nearly 42 years. At 92 years old, Biya is the world’s oldest-serving head of state. If he were to win the upcoming presidential election on October 12, it would be his eighth consecutive term in office.

Of the 83 presidential candidates submitted to ELECAM for consideration, only 13 were approved. Kamto, who had been nominated as the candidate for the African Movement for New Independence and Democracy (MANIDEM) party, was not among those approved. He was ostensibly excluded for being one of two MANIDEM candidates; in actuality, the second individual had registered under the party’s name despite belonging to a splinter group, and was not the party’s official candidate. Another opposition party, the Union of the Peoples of Cameroon (UPC) was disqualified for the same reason. However, Biya’s party, the Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM), which also listed more than one candidate, was not excluded. The inconsistent application of the rules has drawn strong criticism, with MANIDEM president Anicet Ekane describing Kamto's exclusion as "arbitrary and provocative".

On Monday, Kamto appealed the decision in an effort to convince ELECAM to approve his candidacy. The final list of approved candidates is expected to be released in the coming days.

Kamto has been Biya’s strongest rival for years. During the last presidential election in 2018, Kamto ran against Biya as the representative of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC), a party that Kamto established himself in 2012. Biya won in a landslide victory, receiving over 70% of the vote. Kamto, who came in second place, received only 14%. The election was considered by many to be fraudulent and was marked by exceptionally low and unequal voter turnout. 

Kamto’s MRC party was unable to endorse a candidate for this year’s election because it does not have representatives in parliament or local councils—a requirement for submitting presidential nominees. Kamto consequently joined MANIDEM, a party founded in the 1990s on the principles of pan-Africanism.

Meanwhile, Biya and his party have been criticized for an authoritarian leadership style. Watchdogs have accused the government of restricting freedom of expression, targeting journalists, limiting the power of opposition parties, rigging elections, and otherwise infringing on democratic processes. 

Cameroon’s political situation is further complicated by ongoing violence in several regions across the country. In the Northwest and Southwest, armed separatist groups are fighting with the government on behalf of the country’s English-speaking minority—a conflict known as the Anglophone crisis. As in many such cases, the roots of the conflict can be traced to colonization, when Cameroon was split between French and British control. At the same time, in the Far North, the militant group Boko Haram has been looting towns and attacking civilians.

Amidst ongoing violence and displacement around the country, the Cameroonian people deserve to vote in free and fair elections, where all major opposition parties are represented.

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Glossary

• Appealed: formally requested that a decision be changed, often by a higher authority or court.

• Arbitrary: based on personal whim or random choice rather than reason or a system of rules.

• Authoritarian: favoring or enforcing strict obedience to authority at the expense of personal freedom.

• Barred: prevented or prohibited from doing something or entering a place.

• Boko Haram: a violent Islamist militant group based in northeastern Nigeria, also active in Cameroon and other parts of the Lake Chad Basin, known for terrorist attacks, abductions, and insurgency.

• Challenger: a person who competes against someone in a contest, especially an election.

• Colonization: the process by which a country takes control of another area, often by force, and settles its own people there.

• Condemns: strongly criticizes or denounces something, especially when it is considered morally wrong or unjust.

• Consecutive: following one after the other in order, without interruption.

• Democratic process: a system in which decisions are made by voting, giving people a voice in how they are governed.

• Displacement: the forced movement of people from their homes, typically due to conflict or disaster.

• Electoral commission: an official body responsible for organizing and overseeing elections.

• Excluded: left out or denied participation.

• Fraudulent: involving deceit, trickery, or dishonesty, especially for personal or political gain.

• Inconsistent: not staying the same throughout; lacking fairness or regularity.

• Infringing: violating or breaking a law, rule, or agreement.

• Militant group: an organized group that uses or advocates violence to achieve political goals.

• Nominee: a person who has been formally selected or proposed for a position or award.

• Opposition (party/leader): a political party or leader that is against or challenges the ruling party.

• Ostensibly: seemingly or apparently, but possibly not actually.

• Pan-Africanism: a political and cultural movement promoting unity and solidarity among African nations and peoples.

• Provocative: likely to cause anger or a strong reaction.

• Rigging (elections): illegally changing or manipulating the outcome of an election.

• Separatist groups: organizations seeking independence for a region from the country it currently belongs to.

• Splinter group: a smaller group that has broken away from a larger organization, often due to disagreements.

• Turnout: the number or percentage of eligible voters who actually vote in an election.

• Vital: absolutely necessary or essential for something to succeed or function properly.

• Watchdogs: independent groups or organizations that monitor and report on government actions or business practices to ensure accountability.