In Ivory Coast, electoral maneuvering has already begun in preparation for 2025. Key figures from V Baoulé have announced their mobilization for the re-election of President Alassane Ouattara in the upcoming presidential elections.
V Baoulé is a region in central Ivory Coast, primarily populated by the Baoulé people, one of the country’s largest ethnic groups. Historically, the Baoulé settled in Ivory Coast in the 18th century, led by Queen Abla Pokou. Their story is marked by a legend in which Queen Pokou sacrificed her own child to calm the waters of a river, allowing her people to cross.
In Ivory Coast, the influence of this ethnic group is strategic, especially in terms of electoral arithmetic. They make up about 23% of the country's total population, equating to roughly 3.9 million individuals. The Baoulé are the largest ethnic group, ahead of the Bétés and the Sénoufos. This mobilization is part of a movement supporting the candidate of the Rassemblement des Houphouëtistes pour la Démocratie et la Paix (RHDP), Alassane Ouattara, under the initiative "2025-EWAN-ADO," led by Louis Habonouan.
The goal is primarily to encourage members of the Baoulé community, both within and beyond V Baoulé, to actively participate in updating the electoral register and to support Ouattara’s candidacy on a large scale. The president of "2025-EWAN-ADO" emphasized the importance of "uncomplicating the Baoulé people’s vote in favor of Alassane Ouattara," recalling that President Houphouët-Boigny entrusted his political legacy to former President Henri Konan Bédié and Alassane Ouattara.
Following the passing of former President Bédié, Ouattara is now seen as the only living guardian of this political philosophy, grounded in the values of fraternity, solidarity, and humanism. A large gathering is planned soon at the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Foundation in Yamoussoukro to rally voters around this vision. The "2025-EWAN-ADO" movement is also reaching out to Baoulé communities in other regions of Ivory Coast and abroad, with a focus on first-time voters. "We are committed to supporting the revision of the electoral list and ensuring the registration of first-time voters to endorse Alassane Ouattara and the RHDP in 2025," he stated.
The pursuit of first-time voters is one of the primary challenges in this election. The Independent Electoral Commission has launched a civic awareness campaign to encourage citizen participation and simplify administrative procedures for voter registration. The revision of the electoral roll is a crucial step in this regard.
Initially set to end in late October, this process has been extended to the end of November to allow as many citizens as possible to update their voter information. The IEC has also increased the number of registration sites to make it easier for voters. Political parties, for their part, are already deep into pre-campaigning, as seen in the efforts led by V Baoulé figures. Political leaders such as Guillaume Soro, Charles Blé Goudé, and Laurent Gbagbo are beginning to mobilize their supporters and prepare their strategies.