Direct elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo occur for the Presidency, National Assembly (lower house of the legislature), and provincial assemblies. The Senate (the upper house), and provincial governors are elected indirectly by members of the provincial assemblies.
Electoral law also provides for the direct election of local councils—commune, sector, and chiefdom—as well as indirect elections for city mayors, city councils, commune burgomasters, and sector chiefs. None of these were held in the first three election cycles under the current system. In the current cycle, as of April 2024, only the election of a limited number of commune councils has occurred.
These elections are run by the Independent National Electoral Commission, often referred to by its French acronym CENI. New elections should be run every five years.
The 1960 elections, held just before independence, saw Patrice Lumumba become prime minister and Joseph Kasavubu president. In 1965 Mobutu Sese Seko seized power and declared himself president amid the Congo Crisis. He was formally elected to a seven-year term in 1970. Establishing the single-party Republic of Zaire, his presidency was renewed by show elections in 1977 and 1984 while legislative elections were abolished altogether by 1975. Mobutu ruled until 1997 when Laurent Kabila seized power after the First Congo War. When Laurent Kabila was killed in 2001, his son Joseph Kabila took over the presidency while the country was going through the Second Congo War (1998–2003). The Second Congo War was officially declared over in 2003. The period that followed was relatively peaceful, with the United Nations' largest peacekeeping force maintaining the peace. However, the Ituri Conflict marred the peace, with periods of violence in the northeastern Ituri Province. In December 2005 a referendum on a new constitution was held. It was approved, paving way for the first multiparty elections in 46 years.
The first multi-party elections in the country since 1960 took place in July 2006. Kabila was elected president and was reelected in 2011. His constitutionally-mandated term ended in 2016, but the government put off a new election, citing logistical problems and the ongoing conflict in the eastern DRC. The long delayed general election finally took place on 30 December 2018, which resulted in a surprise victory for Félix Tshisekedi, although this was questioned by election observers and led to accusations of voter fraud by another opposition candidate, Martin Fayulu. The Constitutional Court of the DRC dismissed Fayulu's challenge of the result, confirming Tshisekedi as the winner. Joseph Kabila stepped down in January 2019, with Tshisekedi being inaugurated as the 5th President of the DRC on January 24. This was the first democratic transition of power in the country since it gained independence in 1960. Tshisekedi was reelected with a large majority in December 2023, coming ahead of Moise Katumbi and Fayulu.
| data-sort-type=date | data-sort-type=date | Election day | Election | Type | Status | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| data-sort-value="1 Feb 2024" | 1 Feb | data-sort-value="29 Apr 2024" | 29 Apr | Senate and gubernatorial | indirect | Result validation | |
| data-sort-value="1 Feb 2024" | 1 Feb | data-sort-value="2 May 2024" | 2 May | South Kivu governor runoff | indirect | Result validation | |
| data-sort-value="1 Feb 2024" | 1 Feb | data-sort-value="24 May 2024" | 24 May | Equateur senators and governor | indirect | Result validation | |
| data-sort-value="1 Feb 2024" | 1 Feb | data-sort-value="24 May 2024" | 24 May | Ituri senators | indirect | Result validation | |
| data-sort-value="5 Apr 2024" | 5 Apr | data-sort-value="26 May 2024" | 26 May | Mai-Ndombe and North Kivu senators | indirect | Result validation | |
| data-sort-value="5 Apr 2024" | 5 Apr | data-sort-value="2 Jun 2024" | 26 May | Mai-Ndombe governor | indirect | Result validation | |
| data-sort-value="24 Apr 2024" | 24 Apr | data-sort-value="19 Jun 2024" | 19 Jun | Commune burgomasters and city councils | indirect | Indefinately delayed | |
| data-sort-value="11 Jun 2024" | 11 Jun | data-sort-value="12 Jul 2024" | 12 Jul | Yakoma and Masimanimba national and provincial deputies do-over | direct | UNKOWN | |
| data-sort-value="26 Jul 2024" | 26 Jul | data-sort-value="7 Sep 2024" | 7 Sep | City mayors | indirect | ||
| data-sort-value="1 Jan 2025" | TBD | data-sort-value="1 Jan 2025" | TBD | Kwilu and Nord-Ubangi senators and governors | indirect |
See main article: 2023 Democratic Republic of the Congo general election and 2024 Democratic Republic of the Congo Senate election.
transition; Last update August 1, 2006