Parliament has adjourned debate on the Constitution of Sierra Leone (Amendment) Bill, 2025, until Friday, 31 July 2026, after an intense legislative session that ran from Tuesday morning into the early hours of Wednesday.

The marathon debate began at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, 28 July, and concluded at 1:56 a.m. on Wednesday, 29 July, following prolonged exchanges between ruling party and opposition lawmakers. Speaker of Parliament confirmed that the debate will resume at 10:00 a.m. on Friday.

Attorney-General and Minister of Justice Alpha Sesay, who piloted the Bill through its Second and Third Readings, told lawmakers the proposed reforms draw from the Justice Edmond Cowan Constitutional Review Committee Report and the Tripartite Committee Recommendations. He maintained that the electoral provisions are already reflected in Sierra Leone’s legal framework, describing the Bill as “not partisan, but generational”.

The proposed legislation introduces significant constitutional reforms covering elections, governance, political parties, security institutions, and Sierra Leone’s democratic framework. Among the most consequential proposals is a change to the rules governing presidential elections: replacing the current 55 per cent requirement with a simple majority and introducing a geographic spread condition requiring a candidate to secure at least 20 per cent of the votes in two-thirds of the country’s districts.

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The Bill also proposes broader electoral changes, including provisions related to district-block proportional representation, fixed election dates, and independent presidential candidates. A 30 per cent quota for women nominees has also been included, aligning with broader gender equality reforms .

The constitutional review process has spanned more than two decades. The call for reform was first articulated in the 1999 Lomé Peace Agreement and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report, both of which recommended a review of the 1991 Constitution to strengthen democratic governance and prevent a relapse into conflict.

The Justice Edmond Cowan Constitutional Review Committee, established in 2013 under former President Ernest Bai Koroma, conducted nationwide consultations between 2013 and 2017, receiving over 150 position papers and holding extensive public engagements. The committee submitted its report in 2017, followed by the issuance of the first Government White Paper in June of that year.

Under President Julius Maada Bio, the government has committed to implementing the Cowan Committee’s recommendations with modifications, incorporating recommendations from the Tripartite Committee to ensure broader public representation.