Doré, who was the president of the Union for the Progress of Guinea (UPG), was an opposition leader for years before being chosen to head a transitional government that was in place during the preparation and conduct of the 2010 presidential election.
[1] With his main support base among the minority ethnic groups of the Forestière region,[5] Doré was a candidate in the 1993 presidential election;[6] according to official results, he placed sixth with 0.9% of the vote.
[4] Following a UPG extraordinary congress, Doré held a press conference in late February 2001 in which he said that Conté and Taylor should act to facilitate peace by ceasing their mutual practice of giving shelter to the other's armed opponents.
[14][16] In the run-up to the December 2003 presidential election, Doré was the spokesman of the Republican Front for Democratic Change (FRAD), which grouped seven opposition parties.
FRAD boycotted a dialogue that the government attempted to initiate in July 2003; later, in September 2003, Interior Minister Moussa Solano said that opposition activities could be covered in the state media, but Doré, acting as FRAD spokesman, stressed that nothing less than a "signed statement by the authorities" would suffice, and he observed that the government had ignored opposition demands for the creation of a new and independent electoral commission.
[20] In an interview with Radio France Internationale on 13 November 2003, Doré said that Conté's medical certificate, which cleared him to stand as a candidate despite his obviously failing health, was farcical.
[21] Minister of Security Aboubacar Sampil spoke of putting him on trial for the offense of insulting the President, but he was quickly released, apparently due to pressure from the West,[22] after 21 hours in detention.
[3] Doré struck a defiant tone upon his release from prison: "This will not cower me into submission ... as a matter of fact I am now determined more than before to see an end to the regime of Conté.
[22] At a news conference on 18 November 2003, FRAD denounced Sampil for "turn[ing] this country into a police state" and demanded a delay in the election, vowing to disrupt it if it was held as planned in December.
[23] When Conté, who was easily re-elected, was sworn in for his new term on 19 January 2004, Doré said that it was "a sad day for Guinean politics", and he observed that several important regional leaders were not present for the occasion.
[26] Later, on 10 September 2005, Doré read a statement on behalf of FRAD in which he described Conté as "an obstacle to Guinea's development" and urged him to resign: "You are not what the country needs.
[2] In January 2007, amidst a general strike backed by the opposition, Doré said that the people were outraged by Conté's "arrogant show of impunity" in releasing two of his friends from prison.
[32] However, elements of the military seized power in a coup d'état within hours, establishing the National Council for Democracy and Development (CNDD) as the ruling junta.
According to Doré's account, he was then assaulted by five soldiers from the Presidential Guard, two of whom had been ULIMO fighters, and was nearly killed before Captain Moussa Tiégboro Camara, who was Minister at the Presidency for the Fight Against Drugs and Organized Crime, intervened:[38] Doré, while continuing to endure beatings from members of the Presidential Guard, was taken to a car by Tiégboro and driven away, along with the other opposition leaders, who had also been beaten.
On 15 January 2010, the FFV proposed two candidates for the post, Doré and the key union leader Rabiatou Serah Diallo, telling Konaté to choose between them.
[40] There was reportedly a split in the FFV regarding its choice, with political parties supporting Doré while the unions and civil society groups backed Diallo.
[43] The fact that Doré held a university degree was reportedly the deciding factor, although Diallo's union supporters were unhappy with the outcome.
He also explained that Konaté had told him to choose ministers who met "three criteria: competence, not being under international sanctions, and taking into account ethnic balance".
The key junta officials Mamadou Toto Camara and Siba Lolamou notably retained their portfolios (security and justice, respectively).
[51] After Alpha Condé won the presidential election in a controversial and hotly contested second round of voting, he took office as President of Guinea on 21 December 2010.
Condé offered warm praise for Doré's government, saying that it had done an excellent job of paving the way for a free and fair election and facilitating a largely peaceful transfer of power.