Then, on 10 December 2012, fighters from the Séléka rebel coalition seized the towns of N'Délé, Sam Ouandja and Ouadda.

Though the offer was spurned, other central African states and South Africa sent in troops to secure the country and its capital, Bangui, from Séléka.

The agreement led to a dropping of the demand for President François Bozizé's resignation, but required that he appoint a new prime minister from the opposition.

[7] The National Assembly of the Central African Republic was also dissolved within a week, with a year-long coalition government formed in its place and a new election called for within 12 months.

[8] The government was also required to free all political prisoners imprisoned during the conflict and that foreign troops must return to their countries of origin.

[11][12] Officially, he was excluded because he was not registered on the voter list and because he had agreed not to run again as part of the peace agreement in January 2013, two months before he was ousted.

[11][12] The KNK said that Bozizé's exclusion was "the result of internal and external pressure",[13] with many of his supporters alleging that the French government was involved in the decision.

[12] About 30 candidates were approved to run, including three former prime ministers (Anicet Georges Dologuélé, Martin Ziguélé, and Faustin Archange Touadéra) and three sons of former presidents (Désiré Kolingba, Sylvain Patassé, and Jean-Serge Bokassa).

Presenting himself as a candidate of peace and inclusion, Anicet Georges Dologuélé declared that he had "never held a weapon" and said that Bozizé would be able to play some unspecified role in national affairs.

[16] The polls were characterized by insecurity, and many voters could not participate because of the dire security situation and were instead seeking refuge in other countries.

[20] The Transitional Constitutional Court approved the final results on 25 January, putting Dologuélé in first place with 23.74% of the vote and Touadéra second with 19.05%.

Although Dologuélé alleged fraud, he nevertheless stated that "for the sake of peace" he accepted the official results, would not appeal, and "recognize[d] Faustin-Archange Touadéra as the leader of all Central Africans".