Kinshasa — A second leading opposition politician in the Democratic Republic of Congo registered for December’s presidential election. "The congress of my party has designated me as its candidate," Vital Kamerhe, who finished third in the last vote in 2011, told reporters as he left the electoral commission in the capital, Kinshasa, on Monday. Parliamentary and presidential elections are due to take place on December 23, more than two years later than originally scheduled. Kamerhe is the second opposition heavyweight to file his bid to replace President Joseph Kabila, who has been in power since 2001. Congo’s constitution prevents Kabila, elected in 2006 and 2011, from seeking a third term, but the president’s continuing refusal to rule himself out is fuelling opposition suspicions that he plans to change or reinterpret the rules. The president’s coalition has launched private consultations to choose its candidate — with some members urging Kabila to run again. Jean-Pierre Bemba, an...
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