[1] Incumbent President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh was re-elected for a fourth term, receiving 87% of the vote in the first round.

The Union for the Presidential Majority believed that Guelleh would win a landslide victory and prevent a second round run-off.

[4] The Union for National Salvation (USN), a coalition of seven opposition parties, claimed the election lacked transparency.

[5] Three of the seven parties decided to boycott the elections, whilst two others fielded their own candidates, with Mohamed Daoud Chehem and Omar Elmi Khaireh running against each other.

[6] A team of BBC journalists who had conducted an interview with the Djibouti Foreign Minister and an opposition candidate were detained by the police.