The Ivorian opposition coalition known as "CAP Côte d'Ivoire", which brings together twenty-four (24) political parties including the Democratic Party of Côte d'Ivoire (PDCI) led by Cheick Tidjane Thiam, the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI) of Pascal Affi N’Guessan, and the Generations Capable Movement (MGC) of Simone Gbagbo, organized a "mega rally" on Saturday, May 31, 2025, at the Ficgayo Square in Yopougon, western Abidjan. According to the organizers, the event gathered around 50,000 people.

During the rally, Cheick Tidjane Thiam, President of the PDCI-RDA and also President of the CAP-Côte d’Ivoire Conference of Presidents, delivered a speech via videoconference from Paris, where he is currently staying.

“In the 2025 report by the V-Dem Institute, our country is now classified as an electoral autocracy. Autocracy means dictatorship. It's the type of regime that organizes multiparty elections marred by irregularities, restrictions on freedom of expression, and limitations on political competition… That is how this report describes the situation. Based on this index, our country is ranked 107th out of 179 countries—far behind Ghana, ranked 50th, Senegal, ranked 69th, and Liberia, ranked 78th,” revealed Mr. Thiam in his address.

Regarding the Human Development Index (HDI), the PDCI-RDA president argued that Côte d’Ivoire should be compared with countries that share similar geography and resources, such as Ghana.

“When we raised the issue of the Human Development Index, we were told, ‘We don’t care.’ Today, with some minor progress, we’re told it’s the most important thing. We must compare ourselves with countries that have similar geography and resources. Ghana, which is comparable to us, is ranked 143rd, not 157th,” said Mr. Thiam.

He also called on Ivorian authorities “to show good sense and moderation.”

“I’m very pleased to speak to you from Paris. We call on the government to show good sense and moderation. The maximum number of Ivorians must be able to vote. There must be a revision of the electoral list before the (presidential) election,” Mr. Thiam urged, while calling on political actors “to reject hate speech and xenophobia.”

“(...) Ivorians should not be taken for fools. They just want to annul my democratic election as head of the PDCI-RDA,” also denounced Mr. Thiam.

Before him, several other leaders of the coalition’s member parties—including Charles Blé Goudé (COJEP), Affi N’Guessan (FPI), and Simone Gbagbo (MGC) addressed their supporters.

“I have not lost hope in Côte d’Ivoire. No one has a ‘Definitive Concession Order (ACD)’ on this country,” said Mr. Blé, calling in turn for dialogue between the government and the opposition to ensure a peaceful presidential election in October 2025.

As for Pascal Affi N’Guessan, President of the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI), he denounced what he described as the “hijacking” of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC):

“We demand the dissolution of the IEC,” Mr. Affi declared.

For her part, Simone Ehivet Gbagbo, President of the Generations Capable Movement (MGC) and spokesperson of the CAP-Côte d’Ivoire coalition, expressed her hope that the ruling party RHDP would not select President Alassane Ouattara as its candidate in the upcoming October presidential election.

“(...) President Alassane Ouattara should never have been a candidate in 2020. I urge the RHDP to reconsider and propose another candidate,” said the MGC president.

“We want an IEC with no representatives from political parties. We want a fair electoral boundary distribution. We do not agree with this citizen sponsorship system,” stated the CAP-Côte d’Ivoire spokesperson, among other demands.

With five months to go before the Ivorian presidential election in October 2025, the opposition is organizing itself to face the RHDP of Alassane Ouattara, who continues to keep the identity of the ruling party’s candidate under wraps.