25,932,300 people
Source: Tyranny Tracker
HRF classifies Mali as ruled by a fully authoritarian regime.
Mali is a unitary state. The Head of State, Gen. Assimi Goïta, has suspended democratic constitutionalism since first leading an August 2020 military coup, which ousted the last elected civilian president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. The military takeover came amid mass protests against Keita’s regime over the presence of French troops, worsening insecurity from terrorism and a separatist insurgency in northern Mali, and corruption. Goïta, who expelled French troops and invited the Russian private mercenary group Wagner, staged another coup in May 2021. The junta has repeatedly delayed its promise to hold general elections, and it has extended the period of transitional military rule from 18 months to five years. With the military battling several armed groups—including terrorists, separatists, and insurgents—which have been contesting the state’s control over some parts of northern and central Mali since 2012, the regime has made criticism of the military or its operations against these groups a crime.
Direct national-level elections, such as parliamentary or presidential elections, have been absent in Mali since the military junta seized power and suspended constitutionalism. The regime has taken steps to unjustly maintain power, including repeatedly postponing new elections intended to re-establish democratic governance. Since 2025, political parties have been banned, and Goïta’s regime has significantly obstructed genuine opposition efforts. The regime has also severely compromised independent electoral oversight. The cabinet and the minister of territorial administration oversee the appointment process for the 15 commissioners of the Independent Authority for Election Management, with eight of them being selected by government officials.
Independent media, civil society leaders, organizations, and regular people face overt and systematic retaliation if they openly criticize the regime. The regime has unjustly closed or taken actions resulting in the shutdown of key independent and dissenting organizations. It has heavily manipulated media coverage in its favor. Additionally, the regime has severely intimidated independent media, political figures, civil society leaders, organizations, and ordinary citizens, or otherwise significantly and unfairly hindered their work.
Institutions largely fail to serve as independent checks on the regime. Judges who rule contrary to the regime’s interests or are perceived as threats to the regime frequently face retaliation. The regime has severely undermined institutional judicial independence, and a culture of impunity persists among officials aligned with the regime.
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