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Presidential elections were held in Gabon on 6 December 1998. Incumbent President Omar Bongo, in power since 1967, sought a seven-year term against five other candidates. It was Gabon's second multi-party presidential election and, despite low turnout and polling problems, Bongo won the election with 66.88% of the vote.[1][2]
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In late July 1998, the ruling Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) called for Bongo to run for re-election, praising him as a "trump card for the third millennium". Also in July, the opposition National Woodcutters' Rally (RNB) split into two factions, one headed by Paul Mba Abessole and one headed by Pierre-Andre Kombila, after Kombila was expelled from the party.[3]
Pierre Mamboundou of the Union of the Gabonese People (UPG) ran as the candidate of the High Council of the Resistance, a coalition of opposition parties that included the UPG, the African Forum for Reconstruction, the Mebiame Group, MORENA–Original and the Socialist Emancipation Movement of the People.[4][5] The Gabonese Progress Party (PGP) of Pierre-Louis Agondjo Okawé supported Mamboundou.[6]
The publication of opinion polls was prohibited by the National Communication Council during the week immediately preceding the election.[7]
According to final results from the Constitutional Court, Bongo won the election with 66.88% of the vote. Mamboundou officially placed second with 16.54% of the vote.[8][9] Mamboundou denounced the official results as an "electoral coup d'etat" and called on the people to begin a "graduated response" by engaging in a stay at home ("ghost city") protest.[9] Following the election, he alleged that commandos sent by the government tried to kill him on 12 December 1998.[10] While Mamboundou's call for people to stay at home was mostly ignored in Libreville, Port-Gentil was reportedly "paralysed".[11]
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omar Bongo | Gabonese Democratic Party | 211,955 | 66.88 | |
| Pierre Mamboundou | Union of the Gabonese People | 52,278 | 16.50 | |
| Paul Mba Abessole | National Woodcutters' Rally | 41,701 | 13.16 | |
| Pierre-André Kombila | National Woodcutters' Rally – Democratic | 4,847 | 1.53 | |
| Pierre Claver Maganga Moussavou | Social Democratic Party | 3,152 | 0.99 | |
| Martin Edzodzomo-Ela | Independent | 1,548 | 0.49 | |
| Alain Engouang Nze | National Confederation of Woodcutters Associations | 892 | 0.28 | |
| Joseph Adrien Mabicka Maguena | Independent | 527 | 0.17 | |
| Total | 316,900 | 100.00 | ||
| Source: African Elections Database | ||||
Jean-François Ntoutoume Emane was Bongo's campaign manager during the election, and he was subsequently appointed as Prime Minister in January 1999.[12]
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