Now Reading: From Election Chief to Rebel Leader: The Rise of M23’s Corneille Nangaa
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From Election Chief to Rebel Leader: The Rise of M23’s Corneille Nangaa
Once tasked with overseeing the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) electoral process, Corneille Nangaa has now emerged as the leader of a powerful insurgency against President Félix Tshisekedi.
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| Corneille Nangaa |
Nangaa, who formerly led the country’s Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI), now commands the Congo River Alliance (CRA)—a coalition allied with the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels. Having already seized key cities, including Goma, Nangaa has vowed to advance toward Kinshasa.
Born in Haut-Uele Province in 1970, Nangaa studied economics at the University of Kinshasa before working with international organizations, including the UN Development Programme. His political breakthrough came in 2015 when he was appointed CENI chairman under then-president Joseph Kabila.
In 2018, he oversaw Congo’s contentious presidential election, which resulted in Félix Tshisekedi’s victory amid allegations of electoral fraud. The controversy led to US-imposed sanctions against him in 2021 for “undermining democracy.”
Now leading an armed rebellion, Nangaa remains at the center of the DRC’s escalating conflict, with the government sentencing him to death in absentia.
