Mali's current political order is transitional, with governing arrangements shaped by recent conflict, military intervention or an incomplete constitutional transition. Assimi Goïta serves as President of Mali under the present framework.
Mali is governed under a military-led transitional system that followed the coups of 2020 and 2021. The President of the Transition is head of state, while a prime minister and cabinet administer the government under the Constitution and a revised Transitional Charter. The transition has been extended, and the military leadership remains the central political authority.
Legislative functions are performed by the National Transitional Council, an appointed transitional body that debates and adopts legislation in place of a normally elected National Assembly. It also carries out formal oversight within the transition. Courts and other state institutions continue to operate, but the political framework is not yet an ordinary elected constitutional order.
Mali is a unitary state. As of 2026, the transition remains in force, and national politics are strongly shaped by security policy, institutional restructuring, and the authorities' stated program of refoundation rather than by a regular cycle of competitive national elections.
