Guinea is set to hold presidential elections - the first since a coup four years ago.
According to local radio station SABC, nine candidates are running, including the current interim head of state, Mamady Doumbuya, who is considered the frontrunner. Doumbuya is running as an independent candidate, but enjoys the support of the "Generation for Modernity and Development" movement.
His main opponent could be Abdoulaye Hiero Baldé, former Minister of Higher Education and Research (2015-2020), nominated by the opposition party "Democratic Front of Guinea".
Other candidates who are considered to be successful are Ibrahima Abe Sila, former Minister of Hydroelectricity and Hydrocarbons (2021-2025), and Makale Camara, former Minister of Foreign Affairs (2015-2017).
The opposition leaders are Sélou Dalen Diallo, leader of the Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea, and Sidia Touré, President of the Union of Republican Forces and former Prime Minister of Guinea (1996-1999), are not running. Their candidacies were rejected by the Supreme Court on the grounds that Diallo is outside Guinea and is suspected of corruption, while Touré is over 70 years old (the upper age limit for a candidate).
Alpha Conde, former President of Guinea (2010-2021), who was overthrown in a coup, did not file a candidacy, although he actively participates in the country's political life while abroad.
Guinea is currently ruled by the military, which, led by Doumbuya, carried out a coup in September 2021. A month later, he was sworn in as interim president. The military initially announced its intention to hold free elections and restore civilian rule by December 2024, but later extended this deadline by one year. Presidential elections in Guinea are expected to be followed by parliamentary elections.