Benin: Arrival Statement of the African Union Election Observation Mission for the 11 January 2026 General Elections in the Republic of Benin

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At the invitation of the Government of the Republic of Benin, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC), His Excellency Mr. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, following the proposal of the Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, His Excellency Ambassador Bankole Adeoye, deployed a short-term Election Observation Mission (AUEOM) to the Republic of Benin on January 6, 2026 to observe the last days of the election campaign, election day operations, and the first days of the post-election period.

This deployment is part of the 2026 general elections, which began with the legislative and local elections of January 11, 2026.

The Mission is under the leadership of Ambassador Calixte Aristide MBARI, Head of the Democracy, Elections and Constitutionalism Division, Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security of the African Union Commission.

The Mission is composed of twenty (20) Short-Term Observers (STOs) from the following fourteen (14) Member States: Cameroon, Central African Republic (CAR), Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, and Zambia. The mission includes electoral experts representing the geographical diversity of the continent.

In accordance with its methodology, the Mission will monitor the evolution of the electoral process, the campaign, election day, and the early stages of centralization of the provisional results. The Mission will meet with internal and external stakeholders involved in the electoral process.

The Mission is based at the GOLDEN TULIP - Diplomate Hotel in Cotonou and will stay there until January 15, 2026. It will make a Final Report with relevant recommendations within one month of the date of the announcement of the final results of these elections to improve the conduct of the next elections.

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