Djibouti Drops Presidential Age Limit, Paving Way for Guelleh’s Sixth Term

Djibouti’s parliament has voted to remove the constitutional age limit for presidential candidates, clearing the path for Ismail Omar Guelleh, 77, to seek a sixth term in office in April 2026.

All 65 lawmakers present on Sunday backed the amendment, which abolishes the previous age ceiling of 75 years. The measure must still be approved by the president and pass a second parliamentary vote on November 2, or be put to a national referendum.

Guelleh, widely known as IOG, has ruled the small Horn of Africa nation since 1999, when he succeeded its founding leader, Hassan Gouled Aptidon.

The irony hasn’t gone unnoticed: the same president who introduced the age limit in 2010 now benefits from its repeal. That 2010 reform package also abolished term limits, reducing each mandate from six to five years while allowing Guelleh to remain in power indefinitely.

National Assembly Speaker Dileita Mohamed Dileita defended the latest change, saying it reflected public will and was necessary for “stability in a turbulent region.” He claimed 80 percent public support, though the figure could not be independently verified.

Guelleh himself hinted earlier this year that he had no intention of stepping down.

“All I can tell you is that I love my country too much to embark on an irresponsible adventure and be the cause of divisions,” he told Jeune Afrique.

Human rights advocates and opposition figures sharply condemned the move.

“This revision prepares a presidency for life,” said Omar Ali Ewado, head of the Djiboutian League for Human Rights, urging a “peaceful democratic transition.”

Daher Ahmed Farah, leader of the Movement for Democratic Renewal and Development, called on foreign powers to rethink their support:

“The country hosts many bases, but these interests lie with the Djiboutian people, not with a single man.”

Guelleh won his fifth term in 2021 with 98 percent of the vote after opposition parties boycotted the election. The United States, while congratulating Djibouti at the time, urged the government to “strengthen democratic institutions and processes.”

Though home to just one million people, Djibouti occupies one of the world’s most strategic locations, controlling access to the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a chokepoint for global shipping between Asia and Europe.

The country hosts the only permanent US military base in Africa, along with bases operated by France, China, Japan, and Italy, a web of foreign interests that has helped insulate Djibouti from regional instability.

Guelleh is now East Africa’s third-longest-serving leader, behind Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni and Eritrea’s Isaias Afwerki.