Africa’s youngest nation announces first election
South Sudan has announced that it will hold its first general election on December 22, after years of repeated postponements since gaining independence more than a decade ago.
The National Elections Commission (NEC) confirmed the date on Monday, saying preparations are underway across the East African country despite an ongoing armed conflict and logistical hurdles.
South Sudan gained independence from Sudan in 2011. It has been governed under a power-sharing arrangement since 2018 as part of a peace agreement that ended a five-year civil war sparked by a feud between President Salva Kiir Mayardit and opposition leader Riek Machar. Machar served as Kiir’s first vice president until his suspension last year after being charged with treason. He is currently under house arrest.
The landlocked country has remained volatile since the end of the war, with political tensions flaring in recent months over the dismissal and arrest of officials purported to be loyal to Machar.
The transitional government has missed election deadlines at least five times, with elections initially expected in 2015 and later pushed to 2018, 2021, 2023, and 2024.
South Sudan has been plagued by political instability and armed conflict since gaining independence in 2011. A five-year civil war erupted in 2013 over a feud between President Salva Kiir Mayardit and former First Vice President Riek Machar, rooted in power struggles within the ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM – the party was founded in Sudan in 1983 and still keeps the same name). The 2018 peace agreement formally ended the civil war, but clashes continue across the country, driven by local militias and resource disputes.
The situation has been further complicated by political upheaval, including the arrest of Machar in March 2025. Machar’s party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement‑in‑Opposition (SPLM‑IO), has warned that his detention effectively nullifies the 2018 peace agreement. Machar has been accused of supporting the White Army, a militia composed largely of Nuer fighters, which reportedly participated in clashes in Upper Nile state.
Ongoing insecurity has displaced hundreds of thousands, worsening the humanitarian crisis. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), by the end of 2025, South Sudan had over 2.7 million internally displaced persons, and more than 9 million people in total are in need of humanitarian assistance.
NEC Chairman Abednego Akok Kacuol said the electoral commission requires $250 million to conduct the 2026 election but has so far received only a fraction of the required funds, SS24 news agency reported.
The government has insisted that the election will go ahead without further extensions, despite growing concerns over political instability, sporadic fighting, and the displacement of civilians across the country.
Machar’s Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) has warned that unresolved security challenges and disputes with Kiir’s administration make holding an election a potentially dangerous undertaking.
In a statement on Monday, acting SPLM-IO chairman Nathaniel Pierino said, “anyone coming to register voters and campaigns in territories controlled” by the group will be treated as a “prisoner of war, or at worst, dead.”
“Holding elections to abrogate [the 2018 peace agreement] for South Sudan is... pure politics, not governance, it is a dangerous escalation and shall throw the country into more chaos,” Pierino warned.
Kiir is expected to run in the December presidential election. It is unclear whether Machar will be permitted to run due to the criminal charges against him.
