Brice Oligui Nguema, who led a coup in Gabon in August 2023, won the presidential election with 90.35% of votes cast, according to provisional results, the Central African country's interior minister said.
The result cements Nguema's grip on power 19 months after the coup ended more than half a century of rule by the Bongo family in Gabon, an oil producer with a population of around 2.5 million.
Nguema's most prominent opponent in the eight-candidate race was Alain Claude Bilie By Nze, who was serving as prime minister under President Ali Bongo at the time of the coup.
Campaigning in a baseball cap bearing his "We Build Together" slogan, Nguema pitched himself as a change agent cracking down on the corrupt old guard.
"A democratically elected government with a clear mandate will be better positioned to engage with multilateral partners and to pursue fiscal reforms and debt restructuring, which are essential to establishing macroeconomic stability."
Gabon's economy grew by 2.9% in 2024, up from 2.4% in 2023, driven in part by infrastructure projects and increased production of commodities such as oil, manganese and timber, according to the World Bank.
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