Cote d'Ivoire President Alassane Ouattara announced on Thursday that he will not run for re-election in the October elections, ending speculation about his political future ahead of the vote.

The 78-year-old ha previously hinted at running for a new term if two of his longtime political rivals were on the ballot.

In his announcement in Parliament on Thursday, Ouattara said he would hand over power to a new generation after 10 years in office.

"I have decided not to be candidate in the Oct. 31 presidential election and to transfer power to a new generation," Ouattara said to a cheering house.

Ouattara was first elected president of the cocoa-rich country in 2010, an election that was followed by violence after his predecessor Laurent Gbagbo, refused to concede defeat. Around 3,000 people died in the violence.

Ouattara's two main rivals, Gbagbo and another former president, Henri Konan Bedie, have not yet said whether they will be candidates in October.