DRC Constitutional Court Clears Referendum Path as Opposition Accuses Tshisekedi of Power Grab

Democratic Republic of Congo’s Constitutional Court has approved a referendum law that critics say could open the way for President Félix Tshisekedi to seek a third term in office. President Tshisekedi, 63, came to power in 2019, and his second and under the current rules final five-year mandate is due to end in late 2028. The DRC’s constitution explicitly states that the number and length of presidential terms cannot be revised.

The court ruling is the latest and most consequential step in a months-long constitutional manoeuvre that has deepened the country’s political crisis at a moment when it is already battling an Ebola outbreak, an escalating conflict with Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in the east, and the displacement of millions of citizens.

The bill, adopted by the Senate in June after passing the National Assembly, would enable a referendum on a new constitution under which Tshisekedi’s previous terms would not count against him, effectively resetting the clock. Both the Senate and National Assembly votes took place without opposition lawmakers, who walked out in protest.

Tshisekedi has not made an unambiguous declaration of intent. “I have not asked for a third term, but if the people want a third term, I will accept,” he said, leaving enough ambiguity to keep the constitutional process moving while maintaining deniability about his own intentions. His opponents are not reassured.

The push for constitutional change is opening another front at home for a president already managing a country at war. Large parts of eastern DRC remain affected by conflict, millions of people have been displaced, and armed groups continue to challenge state authority. Tshisekedi has also suggested there would be no elections in 2028 unless the conflict in the eastern provinces is resolved, a statement critics describe as another mechanism for extending his tenure.

The referendum law has the court’s approval. What it does not yet have is the signature that turns it into law, or the popular legitimacy that would make it anything other than what the people says it already is.

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