Leslie Voltaire, president of Haiti's Transitional Council, says the armed gangs who have terrorized Haitians for months have "taken a step back." Voltaire credited the national police force and the Kenyan-led multinational force for the progress made in confronting gang violence.

Voltaire said he hopes to have a constitutional referendum voted on by April, and envisions the first round of general elections around Nov. 15. Runoffs, he said, would take place around mid-January of 2026 “so that finally on February 7 there could be a legitimate government.”

Haiti's transitional council president Leslie Voltaire said in an interview on Wednesday that a date for the Caribbean nation's long-awaited general elections has been fixed for around Nov. 15 of this year.

Haiti has lacked elected representatives since January 2023 and has not held elections since 2016. The country's capital is almost entirely controlled by armed gangs, and leaders