The Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea (Spanish: Partido Democrático de Guinea Ecuatorial, PDGE) is the ruling political party in Equatorial Guinea. It was established by President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo as the country's sole legal political organization in 1987. The current Secretary-General is Agustín Nze Nfumu .

Despite the legalization of opposition parties in 1991, the PDGE has been the dominant party since its inception and this situation is unlikely to change in the near future. In the 2004 parliamentary elections, 98 of 100 seats were won by either PDGE members or "opposition" parties that support Obiang. In presidential elections, Obiang typically wins 95-99% of the vote, with the opposition regularly calling for boycotts.

The party has a extremely narrow base, which is the Esangui clan of the Fang tribe, located in the Mongomo region of Río Muni. Since independence in 1968, Equatorial Guinea has been ruled by a single family; the first president, Francisco Macías Nguema, was overthrown by his nephew, Obiang, in 1979. The PDGE has little in the way of a platform or guiding ideology, aside from encouraging foreign investment in the oil sector. The party has been criticized for acting in a very authoritarian manner and teaming up with the government to inform on political dissidents.

External link

• Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea (poorly translated English)