On Monday, October 27, 2025, the Constitutional Council announced Paul Biya’s victory in the October 12 presidential election, with 53.66% of the vote against 35.19% for Issa Tchiroma Bakary, his main opponent in the election.
At 92 years of age, and despite a state of health considered fragile by his detractors, the Cameroonian head of state thus extends a reign that began more than four decades ago.
Candidate Issa Tchiroma Bakary, who came second according to the institution, claims victory over the outgoing president after the October 12, 2025 election.
It should be recalled that on Sunday, October 26, 2025, clashes with security forces in Cameroon left at least four protesters dead before the results were announced, while Issa Tchiroma Bakary claimed victory in the presidential election.
Security forces began with a volley of tear gas before firing “live ammunition,” according to protesters interviewed by AFP.
Issa Tchiroma Bakary, a defector from the presidential camp who recently joined the opposition, gathered several thousand people at his campaign rallies across the country. According to his own tally, he won 54.8% of the vote against 31.3% for incumbent President Paul Biya.
Since last week, his supporters have sporadically taken to the streets to claim victory in the presidential election.
Most analysts expected Paul Biya, the world’s oldest serving head of state, to win another seven-year term in a system that his critics accuse him of having locked down during his 43 years in power.
He is the second head of state to lead Cameroon since its independence from France in 1960, and has ruled by suppressing all opposition, surviving economic upheaval and a separatist conflict since 2016 in the country’s two English-speaking regions.
