South Sudan President Salva Kiir has signed amendments to the country’s election law, removing requirements that elections be preceded by the completion of a permanent constitution and a national census.
The amendments, signed late on Monday, are intended to clear the way for general elections scheduled for Dec. 22, which would be South Sudan’s first since gaining independence in 2011.
The South Sudan Opposition Alliance, a coalition of opposition parties and signatory to the 2018 peace agreement, rejected the changes, saying they were made without adequate consultation among the parties to the accord.
Kiir’s longtime rival, Riek Machar, who leads the main opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-In Opposition (SPLM-IO), has been under house arrest since March 2025 and is facing trial on charges including treason and murder, which he denies.
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Last week, Kiir replaced the head of the elections commission without giving a reason.
Kiir’s office described the amendments to the National Elections Act of 2012 as “another major milestone” in preparations for the vote.
Presidential Affairs Minister Africano Mande Gedima said the changes were aimed at aligning the election law with the transitional constitution and removing provisions that made elections conditional on completing a permanent constitution and conducting a national census.
Under the amended law, the incumbent executive leadership will remain in office with full constitutional powers throughout the election period until a newly elected president assumes office. The first vice president and other vice presidents, however, will leave office within three months before election day.
The law also reduces the National Legislative Assembly from 650 to 270 members. State assemblies will have 58 members, down from 100, while legislative councils in administrative areas will have 20 members.
Parliament passed the bill earlier on Monday before forwarding it to Kiir for assent, as the country enters a critical phase of election preparations. Voter registration has yet to begin.
Edmund Yakani, executive director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organisation, urged political leaders to resolve their differences peacefully.
“Don’t return us to war,” Yakani said in a statement, urging leaders to settle their political differences through non-violent means.
South Sudan’s transitional period was established under a 2018 peace agreement following years of conflict. Preparations for elections have repeatedly been delayed amid slow progress on key issues, including drafting a permanent constitution and conducting a national census.
