Haiti’s transitional council dissolves, hands executive power to prime minister

Haiti’s nine-member Transitional Presidential Council formally dissolved on Feb. 7, 2026, transferring executive authority to Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé in a ceremony held under tight security in Port-au-Prince. The move leaves Fils-Aimé, a 54-year-old businessman, as the country’s sole political executive and places on him the task of organising the first general elections in a decade.

The council was created in April 2024 after the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse to serve as Haiti’s top executive body and shepherd a return to elected government. It governed for nearly two years but was plagued by infighting, allegations of corruption and repeated delays to an electoral timetable that had promised a new president by early February. The council’s tenure coincided with a dramatic deterioration of public safety: reporting has said gang violence has left thousands dead and that armed groups now control roughly 90 percent of the territory around Port-au-Prince.

The transfer comes after a turbulent final week for the panel. In late January several members announced they had voted to remove the prime minister; council members Edgard Leblanc Fils and Leslie Voltaire publicly declared a vote to fire Fils-Aimé at a news conference, though other members were not present. The council’s rules complicate the picture: seven of the nine members hold voting powers and five votes are required for a majority, and it remained unclear whether the council president, Laurent Saint-Cyr, supported the dismissal push.

International pressure intensified as the internal fight unfolded. The United States revoked visas for four unnamed council members and a cabinet minister in late January after reports of efforts to unseat the prime minister. Days before the council stepped down, a U.S. warship and two Coast Guard boats were deployed to waters near Port-au-Prince, a signal of heightened concern among international actors about stability and security.

U.S. officials, relaying comments attributed to Marco Rubio, stressed the strategic importance of steady leadership in confronting gangs. Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott said the message was that the council “must be dissolved by February 7 without corrupt actors seeking to interfere in Haiti's path to elected governance for their own gain.” Other U.S. statements emphasized the “importance” of Fils-Aimé’s continued tenure “to combat terrorist gangs and stabilise the island,” language circulated by American interlocutors.

At the handover ceremony, council president Laurent Saint-Cyr addressed the prime minister directly: “Mr Prime Minister, in this historic moment, I know that you are gauging the depth of the responsibility you are taking on for the country.” Saint-Cyr urged stability and political dialogue as the country transitions from an interim executive to a single figure charged with organising elections and restoring public order.

Analysts warn the path ahead will be perilous. Haiti specialist Michael Deibert cautioned that failure to manage the transition cleanly “could add another element of volatility and uncertainty in the political arena in a country already struggling with the rupture of constitutional order and incredibly severe crises of violence and insecurity.” With no presidential election since 2016 and a fragmented security landscape, Fils-Aimé inherits a task that will test both domestic resilience and international engagement.

Observers will now watch whether the new concentration of executive authority yields the coordination needed to mount security operations, accelerate an electoral timetable, and create space for civic and regional actors to help stabilise Haiti after two years of fractured interim governance.