Democratic Republic of Congo electoral body has announced that the central African nation will hold presidential and parliamentary elections on Dec. 20, 2023, kicking off a year of complex preparations.
Announcing the date at a ceremony in Kinshasa on Saturday, the electoral body outlined several challenges, including the logistics of transporting ballot materials thousands of miles, health concerns about Ebola and COVID-19, and unrest that has forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes.
But the government has pledged to stick to the timetable in the country of 80 million people.
“It is not a question of negotiating with the constitutional deadlines, it is a question of us respecting them and consolidating our democracy,” said government spokesman Patrick Muyaya.
He said that the election will cost about $600 million, more than $450 million of which has already been budgeted.
Candidates are expected to be announced in October next year, with a final list due in November. Tshisekedi is expected to run again and one likely challenger is Martin Fayulu, who claimed victory in the 2018 poll.
