presidential election - The African Mirror

Feb

2024

Senegalese President Sall’s opposition rivals reject talks

SENEGALESE opposition presidential candidates rejected an invitation to join talks that President Macky Sall says are necessary before a delayed presidential election can be scheduled. On Thursday, Sall promised to step down when his mandate ends on April 2 but said he could not yet set a new date for an election despite pressure to end a three-week electoral crisis that has fuelled unrest and fears of democratic backsliding. He said political parties and civil society first needed to take part in talks scheduled for Monday, a day after the presidential vote was originally meant to be held. Sixteen of the 19…

Feb

2024

By The African Mirror

Explainer: What is happening in Senegal and could tensions escalate?

NEWS

SENEGALESE President Macky Sall has promised to schedule a presidential election as soon as possible, accepting a court judgement that the postponement of the February 25 poll to December was unconstitutional. The opposition and foreign powers had urged the authorities to comply with the constitutional council's ruling. The move to do so is likely to ease tensions and allay fears of authoritarian overreach in one of coup-hit West Africa's more stable democracies. WHY DID PRESIDENT MACKY SALL CALL FOR A POSTPONEMENT? Sall, 62, who is not standing for re-election and has reached the constitutional limit of two terms in power, said he…

Jan

2024

By DIADIE BA

Senegal court deals blow to Sonko’s presidential hopes

NEWS

SENEGAL'S Supreme Court ruled against opposition politician Ousmane Sonko in his appeal of a libel conviction, dealing another blow to his hopes of competing in next month's presidential election, lawyers said. Sonko, 49, has been battling various court cases since 2021. These have hampered his plans to vie for the presidency in the February 25 vote and fuelled unrest that has damaged Senegal's reputation as one of West Africa's most stable democracies. After deliberations that extended from Thursday into the early hours of Friday, the court rejected Sonko's appeal against a May conviction that led to him receiving a six-month suspended sentence…

Sep

2023

By The African Mirror

Ghana ex-trade minister quits ruling party to run for president

NEWS

GHANA'S former trade minister said he would resign from the ruling party and run as an independent candidate during the next presidential election in December 2024, dividing a government faced with dwindling support as it grapples with the worst economic crisis in a generation. Alan Kyeremanten, who has served twice as trade minister for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), made the announcement at a briefing and said his contributions were not appreciated. He had already resigned from his ministerial role in January. "The new movement will be led and powered by the youth," he told his supporters at the event. "The (NPP)…

Mar

2023

By The African Mirror

Six Nigerian states drop bid to annul presidential election

NEWS

CAMILLUS EBOH SIX opposition-led Nigerian states night withdrew a Supreme Court petition to invalidate the result of last weekend's presidential vote, which they had argued violated electoral rules, court papers showed. The states, in a court filing signed by their attorneys general, did not give reasons for their decision. Separately, losing presidential candidate Peter Obi secured a court order granting his party access to electoral materials in the possession of the electoral commission as his campaign gathers data for a possible legal challenge Ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party candidate Bola Tinubu was declared the winner on Wednesday, but the two main…

Mar

2023

By The African Mirror

Tinubu is Nigeria’s president-elect after disputed election

NEWS

FELIX ONUAH and MACDONALD DZIRUTWE NIGERIA'S ruling party candidate, Bola Tinubu, was declared president-elect of Africa's most populous nation in the early hours of Wednesday after a weekend election that the main opposition parties have disputed. Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos state, will take over leadership of a country grappling with Islamist insurgencies in the northeast, armed attacks, killings and kidnappings, conflict between livestock herders and farmers, cash, fuel and power shortages, and perennial corruption that opponents say Buhari's party has failed to stamp out, despite promises to do so. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said Tinubu garnered…

Feb

2023

By The African Mirror

Nigeria’s Peter Obi wins in Lagos state in presidential election

NEWS

NIGERIAN presidential candidate Peter Obi, whose campaign attracted young people and urban voters fed up with corrupt politics, won the most votes in the commercial hub of Lagos state, where Africa's biggest city is located. Nigeria's electoral commission began announcing state-by-state results in the national elections on Sunday, though it is not expected to name a victor in the race to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari for several days. Obi of the Labour Party got 582,454 votes, just ahead of 572,606 for former Lagos governor Bola Tinubu for the governing All Progressives Congress party, electoral commission data showed on Monday. Lagos was previously…