DR Congo's leader Felix Tshisekedi has submitted his candidacy for a second term in office, joining a crowded list of presidential hopefuls including opposition heavyweights and a Nobel Peace Prize winner.
The turbulent central African nation, a vast and impoverished country of about 100 million people, is due to hold parliamentary and presidential votes on December 20.
Tshisekedi, who came to power after an election in 2018, officially submitted his candidacy for a second five-year term in office in the capital Kinshasa on Saturday.
He thereby joins over a dozen opposition candidates, including political heavyweights and senior members of the previous administration, but the opposition is far from unified.
Strong chance
Given the fractured opposition, the 60-year-old president is thought to stand a strong chance of winning again.
"He's in a good position," Congolese political scientist Christian Moleka said.
"He's the incumbent, he has the resources of the state, people still believe in him and he's managed to build strategic alliances," he added.
The divided political opposition would need to unite around a single candidate to stand a chance of beating Tshisekedi, according to Moleka.
But that possibility appears slim. Several opposition figures who have something prove have thrown their hats in the ring.
Fayulu back on the ballot
Moise Katumbi, a business magnate and former governor of then-Katanga province is amongst those running. He had been barred from contesting the 2018 vote.
Fellow candidate Martin Fayulu says he won the popular vote in 2018 and that Tshisekedi took the presidency illegitimately.
Nobel-Prize winner Denis Mukwege's entry into the race has complicated matters further.
The surgical gynaecologist and winner of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize, for his work with sexual assault victims, announced his candidacy on October 2.
He has "moral authority," said a diplomat in Kinshasa, who declined to be named.
