Catherine Samba-Panza

She was appointed Mayor of Bangui, the capital of the CAR, by the National Transitional Council (CNT) during the 2012–13 conflict on 14 June 2013.[4][8] Her appointment was accepted by both sides in the conflict due to her reputation for neutrality and incorruptibility,[3] as well as by French President Francois Hollande.[5]

Following the Central African Republic conflict under the Djotodia administration and President Michel Djotodia's resignation after a CEEAC summit on 10 January 2014, Alexandre-Ferdinand Nguendet served as acting president until the CNT elected Samba Panza as interim President[9] from a list of eight candidates who had to prove they had no links to either the Séléka or the Anti-balaka.[10]

She was to lead the country to the 2015 election. Out of the MPs who voted in the election, 129 of the 135 MPs were in parliament. After beating Désiré Kolingba in a second round ballot, she said:[3]

"I call on my children, especially the anti-balaka, to put down their arms and stop all the fighting. The same goes for the ex-Séléka – they should not have fear. I don't want to hear any more talk of murders and killings. Starting today, I am the president of all Central Africans, without exclusion."

Her call for talks between both sides to the conflict was welcomed by the parties.[11]

She was sworn in as President on 23 January 2014.[12] André Nzapayeké was appointed as Prime Minister to serve during her tenure.[13] She presided over a period that was said to be without law, functioning police or courts. Comparisons were drawn in asking if this would be the "next Rwanda;" although Al Jazeera's Barnaby Phillips suggested the Bosnian Genocide's aftermath may be more apt as people were moving into religiously cleansed neighbourhoods.[14]

Samba-Panza suggested poverty and a failure of governance was the cause of the conflict.[15] Samba-Panza replaced Nzapayeké (a Christian) as Prime Minister with Mahamat Kamoun (a Muslim, but without ties to Séléka) in August 2014.[16] As Séléka had no ties to Kamoun, it threatened to boycott the government and threatened to withdraw from the ceasefire.[17]

Samba-Panza served as President from 23 January 2014 till 30 March 2016 when Faustin-Archange Touadéra was sworn in as President after the 2015–16 Central African general election.[18] During her two years as leader of the transition, she had a very difficult task of task of bringing an end to months of sectarian violence that left her country in tatters and organizing a national election to elect a new President.[19][7]

Catherine Samba-Panza announced that she would be running in the 2020 presidential election.[20] She only received 0.9 percent of the vote in the 2020–21 Central African general election.