South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir Mayardit has removed the chairperson of the National Elections Commission (NEC), Professor Abednego Akok Kacuol, and appointed Gabriel Bol Deng Majok to replace him, three months before elections are due to be held.
The changes were announced on state-owned South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation (SSBC) on Tuesday evening. No reason was given for Professor Akok’s removal.
The decision comes as electoral institutions face a tight timetable to prepare for presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for 22 December 2026.
Political science professor Abraham Kuol Nyuon of the University of Juba told Radio Tamazuj that changes within state institutions are not unusual, but questioned the timing of the decision.
“If the government is serious with the election, changes cannot be made at this critical time,” Professor Nyuon said.
He said appointing Deng, who had been serving as the commission’s secretary-general, could help reduce disruption because he is already familiar with the institution and its work.
However, Professor Nyuon said the new chairperson would still need time to familiarise himself with the responsibilities of the position and make key decisions.
“The new chair of the Election Commission should be able to come back and familiarise himself with the duties of that office, which will take time, maybe let’s say a month or two months,” he said.
Professor Nyuon said the leadership change could affect the implementation of the electoral timetable, including preparations for voter registration.
He noted that Professor Akok had recently spoken publicly about voter registration and said the change in leadership could require the commission to spend additional time adjusting to new leadership.
Professor Nyuon said the development could make it more difficult to meet the 22 December election date, although the government has not announced any change to the scheduled polling date.
“It’s like we have gone ahead three steps and we are back with one step,” he said.
South Sudan’s transitional period and the implementation of the 2018 peace agreement have been extended several times. Under the current roadmap, elections are scheduled for 22 December 2026, ahead of the expiry of the transitional period in February 2027.
Professor Nyuon suggested that the government could consider extending the transitional arrangements if the election timetable could no longer be met.
He said such an extension would give the new elections commission leadership more time to complete preparations and address any delays caused by the change.
Akok and Deng’s backgrounds
Professor Abednego Akok Kacuol, who was born in Yirol, Lakes State, in 1955, holds a PhD in Public Administration from the University of Khartoum.
He taught at the University of Juba from 1993 and later served as Dean of Student Affairs and Director of the university’s Centre for Peace and Development Studies.
He also served as Deputy Chairperson of Sudan’s Press Council in Khartoum in 2009.
Professor Akok was first appointed chairperson of South Sudan’s National Elections Commission in August 2012 and was reappointed in November 2023 when the commission was reconstituted under the 2018 peace agreement.
Gabriel Bol Deng Majok had served as the NEC’s Secretary-General before his appointment as chairperson.
He was a senior official involved in preparations for the planned 2026 elections, including electoral infrastructure, voter education and coordination with state authorities.
Legal questions
The change also raises questions about the legal procedure used to remove the NEC chairperson.
Section 12 of South Sudan’s National Elections Act, as amended in 2023, sets out grounds on which the chairperson and other commissioners may be removed, including proven partiality, inability to perform their functions and gross misconduct. The law also provides for a specific removal procedure.
The provision does not appear to give the president an unrestricted power to remove the NEC chairperson at will. However, it was not immediately clear whether any of the statutory grounds were invoked or whether the procedure set out in the law was followed.
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