HAITI · ELECTION
Key Facts
- —The country Haiti is a Caribbean country with no national election since 2016 and severe gang violence.
- —Why it matters The US sanctioned him in 2024 over alleged drug trafficking, yet Haiti’s rules no longer bar US-sanctioned candidates.
- —Why now He filed his candidacy papers on Friday 23 October 2026, a week after registering online.
- —What happened Michel Martelly, president from 2011 to 2016, filed his papers for the Debloke coalition at an electoral office.
- —What it means for you For US readers, the 13 December vote date is in doubt and his candidacy is not yet validated.
- —Still open Whether the electoral council validates his candidacy, and when its new election calendar arrives.
Michel Martelly, a former president of Haiti, filed his papers to run for president again on Friday 23 October 2026, even though the United States sanctioned him in 2024. The US Treasury accused him then of using his influence to help traffic drugs, including cocaine, destined for the United States, and of sponsoring gangs based in Haiti.
Haiti’s electoral council dropped a requirement this month that candidates submit a central-bank certificate, which The Haitian Times described as proof that foreign sanctions had not frozen their assets, while people sanctioned by the UN Security Council remain barred. Martelly is not on the UN list, The Haitian Times reported, and we covered the US action against him in 2024 in Sanctions Hit Former Haitian Leader Martelly for Alleged Drug and Gang Involvement.
The filing is not a final approval, because the electoral council must still decide whether his candidacy is valid. The first round of voting is still officially set for 13 December, but the council has postponed the campaign and promised a new calendar, as our guide Haiti’s 13 December Vote, What US Travellers Need to Know explains.
What Michel Martelly Did on Friday
Martelly deposited the supporting documents for his candidacy on Friday at the departmental electoral office West 1, on the Route de Frères in the Port-au-Prince suburb of Pétion-Ville, Le Nouvelliste reported. He stood as the candidate of the Debloke coalition and came with several lawyers and a crowd of several hundred supporters.
The news site Juno7 said the crowd caused heavy traffic jams around the office, as its reporter saw on the spot. The Spanish news agency EFE wrote that he arrived with his lawyers, surrounded by men carrying rifles, as dozens of supporters cheered.
Juno7 stressed that depositing the documents does not amount to final validation, because the admissibility of his candidacy remains to be established. A week earlier, on Friday 16 October, Martelly had registered online as the 16th presidential candidate, The Haitian Times reported, which is an initial step before documents go to a departmental office.
As of 16 October the electoral council counted 16 presidential candidates, 302 Senate candidates and 1,050 candidates for the Chamber of Deputies. Registration and document submission run until 31 October, after the council extended the original deadline.
Who Michel Martelly Is
Martelly, known as Sweet Micky in his years as a singer, governed Haiti from 14 May 2011 to 7 February 2016, Le Nouvelliste reported. He returned to Haiti on 15 July 2026 after spending years abroad, The Haitian Times reported.
His possible comeback has drawn criticism from some Haitians at home and abroad over his record in office and over worries that he could face little competition, The Haitian Times reported. When it first reported his registration, it found that no major political leader had publicly backed or condemned his bid.
Haiti has held no national election since 2016, and the last president chosen by popular vote, Jovénel Moïse, took office in February 2017 and was assassinated on 7 July 2021, EFE recalled. The country has been through years of political and security crisis since then.
In Plain English
The Provisional Electoral Council, known as the CEP, runs Haiti’s election and decides which candidates are valid. Debloke is a coalition of 11 political parties whose leaders are mostly former lawmakers of Martelly’s old party, the PHTK.
Sanctions are penalties, such as asset freezes and financial bans, that governments impose on people they accuse of crimes or abuses. They are government accusations backed by official action, and no court conviction of Martelly appears in the sources reviewed.
The Sanctions Against Martelly
The US Treasury sanctioned Martelly on 20 August 2024 under an executive order on the global illicit drug trade, after coordinating closely with the Drug Enforcement Administration. The order bars US banks from lending to him and bars US persons from investing in or buying significant amounts of his equity or debt.
It also bars foreign-exchange transactions under US jurisdiction in which he has an interest. The Treasury added that he had been sanctioned earlier, on 17 November 2022, by Canada.
The European Union followed on 15 December 2025, accusing him of arming and financing several gangs, according to the Council of the EU. The Haitian Times described the allegations behind the Canadian, US and EU measures as including gang financing and drug trafficking.
A recent report by the UN Panel of Experts on Haiti accuses Martelly of allegedly helping to finance armed groups and benefiting from illicit activities, The Haitian Times reported. He has denied those allegations, and the sources reviewed show no court ruling against him.
How the Rules Changed Before He Filed
Haiti’s government and electoral council amended the electoral decree for the second time since the original text of 2 June, and Juno7 said the new version appeared in Le Moniteur on 6 October. The change removed the requirement to submit a certificate from the Bank of the Republic of Haiti, which Juno7 described as attesting that a candidate is not an insolvent debtor and The Haitian Times as showing that assets are not frozen.
The Haitian Times explained that sanctioned people had struggled to obtain that certificate because of the effects of sanctions on the banking system. With the certificate gone, UN sanctions are the only remaining barrier for designated individuals, The Haitian Times reported, and some critics say the revised rules remove safeguards and accountability.
The council also postponed the official campaign and extended registration to 31 October, saying it would publish a revised calendar. It began consulting parties and civil society on 19 October, Juno7 reported, but its note set no new dates for the campaign or the vote.
The Other Candidates and the Vote Calendar
EFE named other hopefuls, including former provisional president Jocelerme Privert, former prime minister Claude Joseph and former Chamber of Deputies president Gary Bodeau, whom the US Treasury sanctioned in April 2023 over alleged corruption. The calendar published in July set a first round on 13 December and a second round on 21 February 2027, The Haitian Times reported.
UN human rights chief Volker Türk told the UN Human Rights Council on 2 October that at least 5,700 people were killed or injured in Haiti between 1 January and 11 September, The Haitian Times reported. EFE wrote that the 13 December vote is up in the air after the council postponed the start of the campaign.
What It Means for You
For US readers, the case shows that US sanctions on a Haitian politician do not by themselves decide whether he can stand, because Haiti’s own electoral council sets that rule. The Treasury’s 2024 order still describes what US banks and investors may not do with him, and no removal of it appears in the sources reviewed.
Travellers and Haitian-American families should treat the 13 December date as uncertain until the council publishes its calendar. Our explainer Haiti Politics Explained, Who Holds Power in 2026 covers the other players.
What Is Not Known
It is not known whether the electoral council will validate Martelly’s candidacy, which Juno7 said remains to be established. The council has not published a new calendar, so the 13 December date is unconfirmed.
We found no public US government reaction to his filing and no statement by Martelly answering the Treasury’s accusations in the sources reviewed. The number of presidential candidates after the 16 counted on 16 October is also not known.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Michel Martelly?
Michel Martelly, a former singer known as Sweet Micky, was president of Haiti from 14 May 2011 to 7 February 2016. He filed to run for president again on 23 October 2026.
Can Michel Martelly run despite US sanctions?
Under the revised decree, candidates no longer need proof that foreign sanctions have not frozen their assets, so US or EU sanctions do not bar him. Only UN Security Council sanctions do, and The Haitian Times says he is not on that list.
Is his candidacy approved?
No, the filing is not a final approval. The electoral council still has to decide whether his candidacy is valid, Juno7 reported.
When is the Haiti election?
The first round is officially slated for 13 December 2026, with a second round on 21 February 2027. The council has postponed the campaign and promised a new calendar, so the dates may change.
Why did the US sanction Martelly?
The US Treasury sanctioned him on 20 August 2024, accusing him of facilitating drug trafficking toward the United States, laundering drug money and sponsoring gangs. These are accusations by the US government, and no court conviction appears in our sources.
Sources: Le Nouvelliste, 23 October 2026; Juno7, 23 October 2026; Juno7 on the electoral calendar, October 2026; El Día (EFE), 23 October 2026; The Haitian Times, 16 October 2026; The Haitian Times, 11 October 2026; The Haitian Times, 6 October 2026; Council of the EU, 15 December 2025; US Treasury on Bodeau, 5 April 2023; The Haitian Times, 9 October 2026; Juno7 on the decree, October 2026; US Treasury press release, 20 August 2024.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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