election - The African Mirror

Feb

2024

Senegal President Sall: April 2 will be end of mandate as president

SENEGAL President Macky Sall said that April 2 will be the end of his mandate as president of the West African nation. He added, however, that it was unlikely the election of a new president will be completed before then. His announcement comes after a court ruled last week that a 10-month postponement of the election was unlawful. The election had initially been scheduled for February 25. "April 2, 2024, will be the end of my term at the head of the country, the end of my binding relationship with the Senegalese people as President of the Republic. I would…

Feb

2024

By CHARLOTTE GREENFIELD and ASIF SHAHZAD

Blasts near Pakistan candidates’ offices kill 26 on eve of election

WORLD

TWO explosions near electoral candidates' offices in Pakistan's southwestern province of Balochistan killed 26 people and wounded dozens, officials said, raising concerns over security on the eve of a general election. Pakistan goes to the polls on Thursday amid rising militant attacks and the jailing of Imran Khan, the winner of the last national election, who has been dominating the headlines despite an economic crisis and other woes threatening the nuclear-armed country. Authorities have said they are boosting security at polling booths. The first attack, which killed 14 people, took place at the office of an independent election candidate in Pishin district. The second…

Dec

2023

By The African Mirror

DRC elections: three factors that have shaped Tshisekedi’s bumpy first term as president

NEWS

AFRICA’S second-largest country by land mass, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is scheduled to go to the polls on 20 December 2023. President Felix Tshisekedi will be seeking re-election. However, his first tenure has been decidedly mixed. Tshisekedi’s first term has been defined by three major factors: questions over the legitimacy of his 2019 election victory, violence in eastern DRC and the state of the country’s economy. REUBEN LOFFMAN, Lecturer in African History, Queen Mary University of London I have researched extensively and taught on contemporary Congolese politics for 15 years. In my view, while Tshisekedi has had some…

Dec

2023

By The African Mirror

Madagascar leader wins presidential vote, constitutional court says

NEWS

MADAGASCAR'S incumbent President Andry Rajoelina was declared the winner of last month's election by the country's High Constitutional Court, which handed him a third term after dismissing various challenges to provisional results. "Andry Rajoelina is elected as the president of the Republic of Madagascar and is taking his functions as soon as the swearing (in is conducted)," said court head Florent Rakotoarisoa. He received 58.96% of the votes cast, the court said. The challenges to the electoral body's provisional count that were dismissed included one from the runner-up, lawmaker Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko. He got 14.39% of the vote, according to the…

Oct

2023

By MUHAMMAD AL GEBALY and FARAH SAAFAN

Sisi confirms candidacy for Egypt poll, opposition report obstacles

NEWS

EGYPTIAN President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi confirmed that he will stand for a third term in office in an election in December, as opposition parties complained that people trying to register support for other candidates had faced obstacles. "Just as I responded to the call of the Egyptians before, today I respond to their call again," Sisi said in a closing speech for a three-day event that promoted policies under his rule at a new capital being built in the desert outside Cairo. "We are on the cusp of our new republic, which seeks to complete the process of the state's…

Dec

2020

By The African Mirror

Central African Republic opposition calls for election delay due to violence

NEWS

ANTOINE ROLLAND CENTRAL African Republic's main opposition coalition on Sunday demanded the December 27 general election be postponed due to violence by armed groups outside the capital Bangui, while the government insisted the vote would go ahead. On Saturday, the authorities accused former president Francois Bozize of plotting a coup after his candidacy was rejected, as U.N. peacekeepers dispersed armed rebel groups occupying roads and towns near Bangui. Fighting was ongoing in several towns, including Mbaiki, about 100 km (62 miles) from Bangui, according to one security source and two humanitarian sources. Francois Bozize The opposition alliance, called Cod2020, which…

Nov

2020

By The African Mirror

Ivory Coast’s Ouattara takes early lead in election

NEWS

AARON ROSS and ANGE ABOA IVORY Coast President Alassane Ouattara has taken a strong early lead as he seeks a third term in an election that has been marked by deadly violence, winning all 20 of the voting districts that were announced by the electoral commission. Ouattara, 78, won at least 99% of the vote in eight of the districts announced from Saturday's vote, most of which are ruling party strongholds. There are 108 districts in total, more of which are expected to be announced soon. The president has been expected to win re-election after his opponents called for a…

Jul

2020

By The African Mirror

Ivory Coast ruling party says it has asked president to run again

NEWS

IVORY Coast's ruling party said on Monday it had asked President Alassane Ouattara to stand for a third term after the death of his chosen successor. Ouattara, 78, had said he would step down and named his close ally, Prime Minister Amadou Gon Coulibaly, as the RHDP party's candidate for the October 31 ballot. But Gon Coulibaly died on July 8, leaving the party without a candidate in the run-up to an election that is expected to test political stability in the world's top cocoa-producing nation. The vote is expected to be the most hotly contested since 2010, when Ouattara's…