The National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI) published, on March 29, the provisional lists of candidates for the election of governors. A total of 231 candidates for governor and vice-governor have been declared eligible and 6 ineligible, out of a total of 237 registered.

Among the tentatively accepted nominations are those of incumbent governors. Notably, there is the candidacy of Fifi Masuka for Lualaba who has decided to position herself at the starting block this time for the race to govern the currently richest mining province of the DRC. She had led the province only as an interim after the removal of its elected governor, Richard Muyej.

Elected in 2019, as the head of Haut-Uele province, Christophe Baseane Nangaa, the younger brother of the former president of CENI, Corneille Nangaa who became the leader of the M23 rebellion, wants to return as the governor of Haut-Uele province. He is also a member of the Sacred Union for the Nation, as much as his main challenger, Senator Jean Bakomito.

In Haut-Katanga, Jacques Kyabula Katwe wants to run again. Elected governor in 2019 under the banner of the Common Front for Congo (FCC) of the former President of the Republic, Joseph Kabila, just like Christophe Baseane Nangaa, Kyabula has shifted to the Sacred Union of Félix Tshisekedi and seems to have gained the trust of this camp. He will be in the race to try to obtain, on April 29, a new term at the head of this copper-rich province.

In Kongo Central, another governor wants to place himself in the starting block. This is Guy Bandu Ndungidi. Elected mid-term after the removal of Governor Atou Matubuana Nkuluki by the Provincial Assembly following legal affairs, Guy Bandu wants this time to have a full mandate to govern a province which also faces challenges related especially to infrastructure. The Lumumba stadium, under construction, has still not seen the end of the work despite several governors having held office.

The same is true for other provinces such as in Sankuru where Jules Lodi is a candidate again, even though he has just been proclaimed national deputy by the Constitutional Court. Opposing him are six other challengers including Stéphane Mukumadi, another former governor of Sankuru ousted by the Provincial Assembly notably for "incompetence".

In the northwest of the country, there is Governor Bobo Boloko for Equateur. Disqualified from the national legislative elections for "electoral fraud", he wants to run again at the head of Equateur province. Against him are 17 other candidates. In the same area, Governor Malo Mobutu is the favorite in Nord-Ubangi against his 5 competitors, while in Sud-Ubangi, Jean-Claude Mabenze also hopes to continue for a new term.

The Electoral Commission has set the election for April 29, 2014. The provisional lists published are displayed at the Provincial Executive Secretariats of CENI since last Friday, March 29.

Dido Nsapu