ABIDJAN, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- The Constitutional Council of Cote d'Ivoire announced on Monday that five out of 60 applications for the country's presidential election, scheduled for Oct. 25, have been deemed valid.

During a hearing presided over by Chantal Nanaba Camara, president of the council, 55 applications, including former President Laurent Gbagbo of the African People's Party (PPA-CI), Tidjane Thiam, president of the Democratic Party of Cote d'Ivoire (PDCI), and Pascal Affi N'Guessan, president of the Ivorian Popular Front (FPI), were declared invalid.

Pascal Affi N'Guessan's application was rejected for lacking sufficient sponsorships, while those of Laurent Gbagbo and Tidjane Thiam were rejected for not being registered on the electoral list.

Among the rejected applications were those of former Prefect of Abidjan Vincent Toh Bi Irie (independent) and Member of Parliament and Mayor of Tiassale Antoine Assale Tiemoko (Today and Tomorrow Cote d'Ivoire, ADCI), also due to insufficient sponsorships.

However, the council validated the applications of President Alassane Ouattara and four other contenders, including former First Lady Simone Ehivet-Gbagbo. ■