Ivorians will head to the polls on Saturday, October 25, to vote in the presidential election amid widespread anger over incumbent President Alassane Ouattara’s decision to run for a fourth consecutive term. Under the constitution, presidents may only serve a maximum of two terms; however, Ouattara argues major constitutional change which was implemented in 2016 “reset” his limit.

Ivory Coast, the world’s largest cocoa and cashew nut producer, is a regional powerhouse and West Africa’s second-largest economy. Perched along the coast of the western Atlantic, between Ghana and Liberia, it boasts vast swaths of rainforest and pristine beaches. About one-quarter of the 32 million population is concentrated in the commercial hub of Abidjan, while the government has its headquarters in the inland capital city of Yamoussoukro. French is the official language in the former colony of France, while the main indigenous languages are Bete, Baoule, Dioula and Senufo.

The nation has seen steady economic advancement under Ouattara, according to metrics from the World Bank, but citizens complain of the rising cost of living and what they say is the unequal playing field for political contenders.

Ivory Coast has historically experienced deadly pre- and post-electoral violence. Election violence escalated into the second Ivorian civil war in 2011, when more than 3,000 people were killed after then-President Laurent Gbagbo refused to concede defeat to Ouattara. This time around, sporadic protests have already erupted in the weeks leading up to the election in response to a ban on key contenders from the polls, particularly Tidjane Thiam, the popular former head of Credit Suisse bank.

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The government has cracked down on these protests, issuing a ban on demonstrations and arresting at least 237 people from the Common Front political movement, which campaigns against the exclusion of political candidates. By Tuesday this week, 58 people had been sentenced to 36 months in prison for protesting.

More than 44,000 police officers and military personnel have been deployed across the country to maintain calm at th