African Union Commission Elections 2025

The elections of the Members of the African Union Commission is the process through which Member States of the African Union vote to elect the senior leadership of the Commission. The Commission, which serves as the Secretariat of the African Union and is headquartered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, is tasked with implementing AU decisions, coordinating activities, and managing daily operations in line with the Union's strategic objectives and policies including “Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want”.

In the upcoming 2025 election cycle, elections will be held for the positions of Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, and six (6) Commissioners, with the Commissioners elected to lead specific thematic portfolios such as Peace and Security.

Since the transition from the Organization of African Unity (OAU) to the African Union (AU) in 2002 there have been five (5) elections undertaken to elect Members of the Commission. The first Commission served from 2003 to 2008, and the current fifth Cohort, elected in 2021, is due to complete its term in 2025.

The upcoming elections of the Senior Leadership of the Commission in February 2025 will be guided by the following key principles:

• equitable regional representation;
• gender parity;
• predictable rotation;
• attracting and retaining Africa’s top talent;
• accountable and effective leadership and management; and
• transparent and merit-based selection.

The regional allocation of the AU Commission’s Senior Leadership positions is based on the principle of equitable regional representation. The five AU regions—Central, East, North, South, West—are each given the opportunity to hold senior leadership roles within the Commission. This ensures that all regions are fairly represented. Positions such as Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, and Commissioners are rotated among the regions to promote inclusivity and balance, following established procedures that align with the AU’s commitment to regional equity.

For the 2025 elections, the Eastern region will contest for the role of Chairperson; the Northern region will contest for the role of Deputy Chairperson; while the remaining three regions (Central, Southern, and Western regions) will contest for the six portfolios of Commissioners. For all the Eight (8) positions, regions are allowed to submit both male and female candidates. Rotational gender parity is applied in the elections of the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson, such that if the Chairperson is male, a female is elected as the Deputy Chairperson and vice-versa.

The regions from which the Chairperson and the Deputy Chairperson are appointed are not eligible for consideration for the six (6) remaining Commissioner posts as a mechanism for equitable representation. The other three (3) regions are entitled to two (2) Commissioners each, equally distributed by gender.

The elected Members of the Commission serve for a term of four years and may be eligible to compete for re-election for another term of four years.

When required for the good functioning of the Union, the Assembly or the Executive Council, where applicable, may terminate the appointment of a Member of the Commission before the end of their term.

The Executive Council may terminate the appointment of a Commissioner following a process involving the Chairperson of the Commission and the Bureau of the Executive Council.

The Assembly, by two-thirds majority and following due process conducted by the Executive Council, may terminate the appointment of the Chairperson or Deputy Chairperson on grounds of incompetence, gross misbehaviour, or inability to perform the functions of his or her office for reason of permanent incapacity certified by a medical board.

Upon termination, the respective region nominates a candidate to complete the remaining term.

The selection process of the candidates is the responsibility of Member States and their respective AU Regions. For the 2025 elections, the Eastern region is eligible to nominate candidates for the position of the Chairperson of the Commission, while the Northern region is eligible to submit candidates for the position of Deputy Chairperson. Member States within these regions independently nominate individuals from their countries. The regions are at liberty to agree on their own procedures for nominating candidates and can then agree on the candidates to be submitted, who will then participate in the election process.

For the Commissioners’ portfolios, the Central, Southern, and Western regions can each field candidates for either of the six posts.

Once a region concludes on its nomination process, the Regional Dean hand delivers the submission of the list of candidates to the Office of the Legal Counsel of the African Union. The Regional Deans are members of the Permanent Representatives’ Committee who are Ambassadors accredited to the African Union. They are appointed by their respective regions as Deans, based on seniority (longest-serving Ambassador of the Region in Addis Ababa). Only names of nominees submitted by the region, through the Regional Dean are considered in the election. No individual submissions by candidates or individual Member States are accepted.

The Panel of Eminent Africans are highly regarded Africans from across the continent. The Panel is composed of five (5) personalities, one per region, and is tasked with overseeing the pre-selection of candidates for the senior leadership of the Commission. The Panel is assisted by an independent African-based consultancy firm.

The Panel develops job profiles and competency requirements for the senior leadership of the Commission. This includes generic leadership skills and competencies as well as expert and thematic skills in relation to specific portfolios.

The assessment process for the positions of Commissioners is based on the skills and competencies identified for each position. The candidates are assessed through an initial review of applications and CVs. Shortlisted candidates are invited for assessment against the skills and competency criteria established for the positions.

Members of the Panel of Eminent Africans overseeing the pre-selection of candidates for the 2025 elections are:

• Prof. Paul Ngarambe, Male, Burundi, representing the Central Region.
• H.E Amb. Konjit SineGiorgis, female, Ethiopia, representing the Eastern Region.
• H.E Amb. Nozipho Joyce Mxakato-Diseko, female, South Africa, representing the Southern Region.
• H.E Amb. Patrick Hayford, male, Ghana, representing the Western Region.

The nominee from the Northern Region will be included in the Panel upon the conclusion of regional consultations and the submission of the nominee.

The elections of the Members of the African Union Commission are conducted by secret ballot, meaning that the votes are cast privately, ensuring confidentiality and preventing any undue influence or pressure on the Member States voting during the election process. Each Member State has one (1) vote and Member States that are under certain categories of sanctions do not have a right to vote.

The elections are conducted as follows: The Executive Council elects and appoints the Commissioners; and thereafter, the Assembly of Heads of State and Government elects and appoints the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson.

In the election for the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, and Commissioners, voting continues until one (1) of the candidates obtains the two-thirds majority required.

The voting process begins with all the candidates on the ballot. Voting is conducted three times and if the third ballot remains inconclusive without any candidate garnering the two-thirds majority, the next ballot shall be restricted to the two (2) candidates who obtained the highest number of votes and the candidate with fewer votes is withdrawn.

Where there are only two (2) candidates initially and neither candidate obtains the majority required after the third ballot, the candidate with fewer votes is withdrawn and the remaining candidate proceeds to the next round. If the remaining candidate fails to obtain the two-thirds majority required in that round, the Chairperson is required to suspend the election.

Where there is only one (1) candidate initially and he or she fails to obtain the two-thirds majority required after the third ballot, the Chairperson is required to suspend the election.

In the event the election of the Chairperson is suspended, the Deputy Chairperson of the Commission takes over the Chairmanship of the Commission on an interim basis until new elections are held.

If the impasse is in respect of the Deputy Chairperson, the most senior Commissioner by length of tenure, or by age where length of tenure is the same, is designated to act as the Deputy Chairperson until new elections are held.

The public does not have a direct role in the actual selection or voting of the Senior Leadership of the Commission. However, the Africa Leadership Debate dubbed MjadalaAfrika is a platform for candidates vying for the position of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission to address African citizens in a televised debate which is broadcasted live as they present their visions and ideas on the implementation of Agenda 2063.

The debate provides candidates an opportunity to outline their vision of how they would lead the transformation of Africa through the implementation of the AU Mandate and Africa’s Agenda 2063. The debate encourages dialogue and understanding of the Role and its responsibilities of the Chairperson of the Commission.

The debate allows African citizens and other stakeholders to put forward questions to the candidates on issues they want addressed and the candidates’ vision to propel the continent’s growth and ensure Africa achieves its goals for integrated and sustainable development and becoming a major player in the Global Arena.

Learn more about the Elections of the African Union Commission by visiting https://au.int/en/auc-leadership-elections.