Democracy News
Nigerien Presidential Election Heads To Run-Off
February 7, 2011
By: Randi Zung | Printer Friendly
On January 31, voters in Niger went to the polls to vote in parliamentary and presidential elections that are meant to restore civilian rule in the country. Former President Mamadou Tandja was ousted in a bloodless military coup in February 2010, after he dissolved the country’s parliament and constitutional court in an effort to silence the governmental opposition. Following Tandja’s removal, junta leader Major Salou Djibo, pledged to return the country to democratic civilian rule and ordered the drafting of a new constitution that would decrease the future powers of the presidential office. The elections are viewed as the final step in the country’s transition back to a democracy. Djibo previously pledged to hand over power before April 6, 2011. Tandja is currently in prison on corruption charges.
According to an observer mission sent by the European Union (EU), the polls in Niger were “transparent and generally well conducted,” Bloomberg reported. Commenting on the polls, deputy head of the EU’s observer mission Santiago Fisas Ayxela stated that the military junta had “a clear intention to restore the conditions for a return to normal constitutional order.” Despite minor reports of attempted electoral fraud, African Union observation mission leader Khalifa Babacar Sall said the incidents did not affect the elections’ outcomes. The Economic Community of West African States’ observation mission said that the polls had a 50 percent overall voter turnout.
Following the release of near-final results from the presidential election, BBC News reported that the presidential election will head to a second round run-off after none of the ten presidential hopefuls received at least 50 percent of the vote. The run-off, scheduled for March 12, will be between veteran opposition leader Mahamadou Issoufou and former Tandja ally ex-Prime Minister Seini Oumarou.
In an address on national television, Niger election commission chairman Gousmane Abdourahmane announced that Issoufou received just over 36 percent of the vote while Oumarou received approximately 23 percent, AFP reported. Ex-Prime Minister Hama Amadou came in third with just under 20 percent. Former president Mahamane Ousmane was fourth with just under 9 percent. Oumarou, Amadou, and Ousmane were reported to have made a coalition agreement aimed at ensuring that Issoufou will not win the second round run-off. According to the agreement, Amadou and Ousmane will back Oumarou in the run-off.
Reporting the parliamentary election’s preliminary results, AFP stated that Issoufou’s Niger Party for Democracy and Socialism won 39 of the 113 seats. Oumarou’s National Movement for the Development of Society won 26 seats. Amadou’s Niger Democratic Party won 24 seats. Ousmane’s Democratic and Social Convention – Rahama party won 2 seats.
For previous news on Niger, please see:
Nigeriens Approve New Constitution; Signals Transition Back To Civilian Rule
Sources:
Bloomberg - Niger Presidential Election Was `Transparent,' As Voting Results Awaited
BBC News - Niger election: Issoufou to face Oumarou in run-off
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