Before a political organization can field candidates in Haiti's elections, it must first register with and be approved by the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) (art. 126 of the electoral decree of 2 June 2026), and the CEP publishes the list of structures authorised to field candidates (art. 129). To be authorised at all, a structure must file a list of 30,000 members, adherents or sympathisers in full possession of their civil and political rights, each identified by name and NINU (arts. 130 to 132). The decree recognizes three forms of political structure, parti, groupement and regroupement, whose names are similar enough to cause genuine confusion. Understanding the difference matters, because it determines the political banner under which candidates compete.
In short
For this electoral cycle, the CEP has approved 105 political structures: 88 parties and 17 groupements. A regroupement was also provided for under the electoral decree, but none was registered before the deadline. A party competes under its own identity; a groupement brings approved parties together under a common electoral identity; and a regroupement would bring existing groupements together into a broader coalition. Independent candidates are separate from all three categories.
The political party
A political party is an individual political organization that competes under its own name and acronym. For the 2026–2027 electoral cycle, the CEP approved 88 political parties to compete independently. These include established forces in Haitian political life as well as newer political formations.
The political groupement
A groupement is a coalition formed by at least ten approved political parties, in accordance with article 4 of the electoral decree. The participating parties join together to compete under a common name and acronym rather than presenting candidates separately under each party's identity.
For this cycle, the CEP approved 17 groupements, whose definitive list was published on August 13, 2026. Collectively, these groupements bring together 228 member parties. For voters, the important point is simple: when a candidate is presented by a groupement, the name and acronym associated with that candidate may be those of the groupement, not one of the individual parties that make up the coalition.
The political regroupement
The electoral decree also provides for a third form of political structure: the regroupement. Under article 4, it is formed by at least two approved groupements, allowing existing alliances to join together in an even broader coalition.
The CEP opened a specific registration period for regroupements. That period closed on August 14, 2026 at 6:00 p.m., and no regroupement was registered. As a result, there are no approved regroupements for this electoral cycle. The category exists in the electoral framework, but no political structure is using it in 2026–2027.
The numbers at a glance
| Form | Approved | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Groupements | 17 | Coalitions bringing together 228 member parties |
| Parties | 88 | Parties approved to compete under their own identity |
| Regroupements | 0 | None registered before the deadline |
| Approved political structures | 105 | The CEP's definitive count of approved structures |
There is an important distinction here: 105 is not the number of political parties in Haiti. It is the number of approved political structures in the CEP's definitive list for this electoral cycle. The 88 parties competing independently are counted as structures, while the parties participating within groupements are represented through those groupements rather than counted again as separate competing structures.
What it costs to stand, and what the law discounts
Approval is only the first gate. A candidacy also has a price, fixed in the decree and paid to the DGI by certified cheque made out to the Public Treasury; the fee is not refundable (art. 156).
| Office | Registration fee | Campaign spending cap |
|---|---|---|
| President | 2,000,000 G | 2,000,000,000 G |
| Senator | 800,000 G | 200,000,000 G |
| Deputy | 300,000 G | 40,000,000 G |
| Municipal cartel | 100,000 G | 20,000,000 G |
| CASEC cartel | 25,000 G | 4,000,000 G |
| ASEC cartel | 25,000 G | 2,000,000 G |
Fees are set by art. 157; the spending caps by arts. 191 and 191.1. The caps exist, in the decree's own words, “to ensure a fair balance between competitors”.
Several reductions are written into the same chapter, and they are worth knowing because they tell you what the framework is trying to encourage:
- Women candidates, 50 % off the registration fee for the presidential and legislative races (art. 158).
- Candidates with a disability, 50 % off the registration fee, for any office (art. 159).
- More than 50 % women on a party's list of deputy candidacies, 20 % off the fee for every registered candidate (art. 140).
- At least one woman among the three Senate candidates in a department, 20 % off per registered candidate (art. 142).
- Large groupements pay less: a groupement of 50 or more approved parties pays nothing at all, 30 to 49 parties gets 75 % off, 20 to 29 gets 50 % off, and 10 to 19 gets 5 % off (art. 136).
- Broad geographic coverage, 25 % off for a groupement of at least ten parties fielding candidates in at least half the electoral districts nationwide (art. 141).
- Qualified candidates, 30 % off where 90 % of a structure's accepted candidates hold at least a licence (art. 162).
These are not automatic. A structure that wants them must apply formally to the CEP, signed by its legal representative, before the candidacy period opens (art. 143).
The rule on women's candidacies
Beyond the discounts, there is an obligation. Every party, groupement or regroupement has a duty to present at least 30 % women among its candidacies for the Chamber of Deputies (art. 138), the decree ties this expressly to art. 17-1 of the Constitution, which recognises a quota of at least 30 % women “at all levels of national life”.
The same principle runs through the machinery of the election itself: every three-member voting bureau must include at least one woman (art. 45), so must every municipal cartel (art. 108) and every CASEC cartel (art. 114), and the electoral offices at departmental and communal level are recruited under a quota of at least 30 % women, with candidates with a disability preferred at equal competence (arts. 22 and 27, as modified on 2 July 2026).
Where the money may come from
- Donations are capped per donor: 20 million gourdes to a party, groupement or regroupement; 12 million to a presidential candidate; 5 million to a Senate candidate; 3 million to a deputy candidate; 1.5 million to a municipal cartel (art. 183).
- Foreign money is prohibited, no direct or indirect financing by a foreign state, person or company (art. 186), and so is any funding from illicit or criminal activity (art. 186.1).
- Large gifts leave a trace. Any donation of 500,000 gourdes or more must be reported by the donor to the finance ministry and the financial-intelligence unit within five working days (art. 185); any cash gift of 250,000 gourdes or more must go through a cheque or bank transfer (art. 189).
- Accounts are filed monthly and audited afterwards. Candidates and structures file the full list of donations and donors on the first of every month, on pain of exclusion from the election (art. 187), and a signed campaign financial report goes to the CSCCA, the finance ministry, the UCREF and the ULCC within thirty days of the final results (art. 190).
Breaching the funding rules is not a technicality. Anyone who contravenes arts. 185, 186 or 186.1 loses the right to vote for ten years if they are a candidate, has their election annulled by the BCEN if they have already won, and cannot present candidates for ten years if it is a party, groupement or regroupement (art. 192 of the decree).
What about independent candidates?
Not every candidate needs to belong to a political structure. The electoral framework also allows individuals to run as independent candidates, provided they meet the applicable legal requirements.
Independent candidates are not included in the 105 political structures because they are individual candidates, not political organizations. Their presence on the ballot therefore does not change the CEP's count of approved political structures.
Questions people ask
How many political structures can field candidates?
105 approved by the CEP for this cycle: 88 parties and 17 groupements. No regroupement was registered before the deadline. See The numbers at a glance.
What is the difference between a party, a groupement and a regroupement?
A party competes under its own name; a groupement is a coalition of at least ten approved parties competing under one common name; a regroupement would join groupements into a broader coalition. See The political groupement.
What does a structure have to do to be authorised?
Register with the CEP (art. 126) and file a list of 30,000 members, adherents or sympathisers in full possession of their civil and political rights, each named with their NINU (arts. 130 to 132). See In short.
Can someone stand without a party?
Yes. Independent candidates are a separate category from all three structures. See What about independent candidates?
What will you actually see?
For voters, the distinction becomes practical on the ballot. A candidate may be presented under the identity of an approved political party, under the identity of an approved groupement, or as an independent candidate, depending on how that candidate is running.
A groupement's name does not necessarily represent a single party. It can represent a coalition of several parties that have agreed to compete together under one electoral banner. That is why two candidates who belong to different political parties may appear under the same groupement during an election.
The CEP's definitive list of approved political structures is the official reference for this electoral cycle. Understanding the name and acronym attached to a candidate is one more way to understand exactly who is asking for your vote, and under what political banner.