Abubakar Hashim
Like Liberia, Senegal, and Ghana, Benin has also demonstrated electoral decorum, as the leading opposition presidential candidate, former Culture Minister Paul Hounkpe, has called to congratulate Finance Minister and the ruling party’s presidential candidate, Romuald Wadagne, even before the final declaration of results today.
Wadagne has so far scored 95.5% of votes cast, against Hounkpe’s 5.95%.
ECOWAS has succeeded in its mission for a smooth democratic transition.
In a 15-page preliminary declaration, read by its head of delegation, former Ghanaian President, Nana Akufo-Addo, in Cotonou yesterday, April 14, 2026, he encouraged the authorities and political actors to continue promoting national cohesion and unity in order to strengthen democratic norms.
Former Benin President, Patrice Talon, had ruled for 10 years and recently survived an attempted military coup to topple his government.
West Africa has been named by the international community as the “coup belt” region of Africa. There have been six coups since 2020.
Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, all currently under military governments, have exited ECOWAS.
The new peaceful democratic transition in Benin, alongside the recent one in neighbouring Guinea, is another victory for ECOWAS, which sent a strong 250-member electoral delegation to Benin to ensure a smooth transition to democracy.
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