Gambiaj.com – (BANJUL, The Gambia) – The Supreme Court of Justice (STJ), acting in its capacity as the Constitutional Court, has approved five candidacies for Guinea-Bissau’s presidential elections scheduled for November 23, 2025. The decision sets the stage for a highly competitive race but leaves one of the country’s most prominent political figures in suspense.
Among the approved candidates is incumbent President Umaro Sissoco Embaló, who is seeking re-election with the backing of the Plataforma Republicana.
He will face former President José Mário Vaz, supported by COLIDE-GB, as well as Fernando Dias, a leader of one of the factions of the Party for Social Renewal (PRS), endorsed by API Cabaz Garandi.
Also cleared to contest are João Bernardo Vieira, the former spokesperson of the PAIGC running with the Partido Unido Social Democrata (PUSD), and Siga Batista, an independent candidate and former senior figure of the PRS.
However, uncertainty still surrounds the candidacy of Domingos Simões Pereira, leader of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC), who is widely seen as Embaló’s main challenger.
Pereira has not yet received official confirmation from the STJ on whether his candidacy has been validated.
The pending decision has fueled speculation about potential political maneuvering ahead of the vote.
Pereira’s exclusion could dramatically alter the dynamics of the race, as he has consistently drawn significant support in past elections and remains a central figure in Guinea-Bissau’s political landscape.
The November poll will be the first presidential contest since the disputed 2019 elections that brought Embaló to power amid tensions and allegations of irregularities.
With both former and current leaders in the running, the upcoming vote is shaping up to be a crucial test for Guinea-Bissau’s fragile democracy.
Meanwhile, a group of senior officials from the African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) has openly challenged the Direção Superior (DSP) led by Domingos Simões Pereira, demanding the urgent convening of an Extraordinary Congress to address what they describe as a “catastrophic” internal crisis.
The move comes in the wake of the Supreme Court of Justice’s rejection of the PAI–Terra Ranka coalition’s candidacy for the November 23 presidential elections, a coalition spearheaded by the PAIGC.
Speaking on behalf of the dissenters at a press conference in Bissau on Friday, Foreign Minister Carlos Pinto Pereira accused the DSP of failing to assume its responsibilities, both in preparing the party’s electoral documents and in providing clarity on PAIGC’s political strategy.
“We are waiting for the executive of the party to take responsibility by convening the party organs and clarifying its position. If this situation persists, the PAIGC is heading towards the abyss. We cannot continue in this catastrophic state,” Pinto Pereira stated.
According to him, the indecisiveness and alleged mismanagement of Simões Pereira and the DSP risk pushing the party—founded by independence leader Amílcar Cabral—into political and organizational collapse.
The dissenters stressed that only an Extraordinary Congress, as the party’s highest decision-making body, could restore internal unity and chart a viable course for participation in the upcoming elections.
