Congo Republic Votes Amid Low Turnout & Internet Blackout

The Republic of Congo held a presidential election on Sunday widely expected to extend the rule of President Denis Sassou Nguesso, one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders, as low turnout and a nationwide internet outage highlighted the limited competitiveness of the contest. The vote comes amid opposition boycotts, jailed political figures and a fragmented field of challengers.

More than 3.2 million citizens were registered to vote in the oil-producing Central African nation, but early signs suggested participation would fall below the nearly 68 percent turnout recorded in the previous presidential election in 2021. During that vote, Sassou secured a five-year mandate with 88.4 percent of ballots cast.

Polling stations in the capital Brazzaville showed little activity throughout the day, with short queues or empty voting sites observed by Reuters. Authorities said provisional results would likely be released within 48 to 72 hours.

After casting his vote in Brazzaville, Sassou said he expected higher participation than the sparse scenes suggested. “We remain hopeful that what I heard throughout the campaign will materialise today,” he told reporters.

The presidential race features six challengers, but analysts say none have the political base or institutional support to seriously threaten Sassou’s hold on power. Two prominent opposition leaders remain in prison while other figures have gone into exile, leaving a weakened opposition landscape.

Several opposition parties have boycotted the election altogether, arguing the political environment does not allow for credible competition. Electoral oversight bodies are dominated by individuals aligned with the ruling Congolese Labour Party, further reinforcing the perception that the outcome is largely predetermined.

Political analyst Remadji Hoinathy of the Pretoria-based Institute for Security Studies said voter fatigue may also be contributing to the limited turnout. “The opposition is fragmented and lacks a strong, emblematic figure,” he said. “There may be fatigue among voters, but that will not affect Sassou’s chances.”

Compounding concerns over the electoral environment, internet monitoring group NetBlocks reported a nationwide connectivity disruption during the vote.

According to the organization, internet traffic across the country dropped to roughly 3 percent of normal levels on Sunday.

NetBlocks director Alp Toker said the outage was consistent with an intentional shutdown. “We confirm that a nation-scale internet blackout is now in effect in the Republic of Congo, a measure likely to limit transparency during today’s election,” he said in comments sent by email to Reuters.

Toker noted that the technical pattern was similar to an internet outage that occurred during the country’s previous presidential election in 2021.

Government officials, including Prime Minister Anatole Collinet Makosso and Communications Minister Thierry Moungalla, did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment about the disruption.

Despite a recent period of economic stabilization following a prolonged downturn, many Congolese citizens continue to face economic hardship. According to World Bank estimates, 52 percent of the country’s 6.1 million residents live in poverty.

The Republic of Congo remains heavily dependent on oil exports for government revenue, leaving the economy vulnerable to global commodity price fluctuations.