Djibouti City, Djibouti — Djibouti’s National Assembly will hold a special session on October 26 to vote on a controversial constitutional amendment, widely seen as an attempt to remove the presidential age limit. This would allow President Ismael Omer Guelleh to run for re-election in 2026.
Guelleh, 77, is currently ineligible to run under the constitution’s 75-year age cap. The vote is scheduled just 18 months before the April 2026 polls. It has ignited fierce political debate over the future of the Horn of Africa nation.
National Assembly Speaker Dileita Mohamed Dileita announced the special session on Wednesday, calling it “a contemporary moment of great importance.” He urged lawmakers to “demonstrate exemplary engagement” and stressed adherence to quorum and majority rules.
Guelleh has led Djibouti since 1999, when he succeeded his uncle, the country’s first president. A 2010 constitutional revision removed term limits but imposed the 75-year age cap.
The country of 1.1 million people hosts major foreign military bases, including those from the US and China. This is due to its strategic location on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, according to the World Bank and security analysts.
A ‘coup d’état’
The government has not officially detailed the proposed change. It has drawn sharp condemnation from critics who believe it targets Article 23 of the Constitution.
That article stipulates that presidential candidates must be between 40 and 75 years old. President Guelleh would be ineligible to run again under this rule.
Alexis Mohamed, a prominent former senior advisor to the president, issued a scathing public letter calling the plan a “coup d’état in preparation.”
In the letter addressed to Assembly Speaker Dileita, Mohamed warned of a “historic political decline” and urged him not to participate.
“I also urge you not to compromise yourself in what history will remember as an exception whose stench will resonate for decades,” Mohamed wrote.
He called on the speaker to “remain loyal to the one and only Republic, and not to a man” and reject what he termed the “final heist of the century.”
The government has not confirmed that the amendment targets the age limit. Officials did not immediately respond to emailed questions from Somalia Today seeking comment on the bill’s contents or Mohamed’s accusations.
Dual political maneuvers
The parliamentary session is part of a two-pronged political manoeuvre by the ruling establishment ahead of the 2026 polls.
Days after the October 26 constitutional vote, the ruling Rassemblement Populaire pour le Progrès (RPP) will convene its own extraordinary congress on November 8.
The congress, initially scheduled for October 25, was postponed due to “political calendar adjustments,” according to the party.
President Guelleh, who serves as the RPP’s chairman, is expected to preside over the meeting.
Other top party figures, including Prime Minister Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed (RPP vice-president) and Finance Minister Ilyas Moussa Dawaleh (RPP secretary-general), are set to attend.
Observers view the congress as a crucial step to consolidate party leadership and strategy. It will likely set the stage to nominate a candidate following the outcome of the constitutional vote.
Stability and continuity
The RPP, founded in 1979, is the oldest political party in Djibouti and dominates the ruling Union for the Presidential Majority (UMP) coalition.
Guelleh’s 25-year tenure has provided significant stability in the Horn of Africa, a region frequently affected by conflict.
This stability has made Djibouti a key partner for global powers. The country leverages its strategic port on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a vital global shipping lane. It uses the port to host military bases for the United States, China, France, Japan, and Italy.
However, critics and human rights organizations accuse the government of using this strategic importance to deflect scrutiny. They argue that stability has been maintained through tight media control and the suppression of dissent. This has resulted in a lack of genuine political pluralism.
The last major constitutional change in 2010 was similarly controversial. It removed the two-term limit, allowing Guelleh to run for a third term. But it also introduced the 75-year age cap, which now presents a barrier to his continued rule.
Djibouti’s political class now focuses on the October 26 session, which Speaker Dileita has framed as a test of the country’s “institutional maturity.”
If the amendment passes and the RPP congress endorses Guelleh, Djibouti will be set for an election defined by continuity, cementing one of Africa’s longest-serving presidencies.