Baghdad-INA
Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani announced his candidacy for a second term in the presidential elections scheduled for June.
Al-Ghazouani (67 years old) has been leading the vast country in West Africa since 2019, during which it witnessed stability despite the escalation of violence in the Sahel region.
Ould Ghazouani said that he decided to send a direct message to the citizens to inform them of his decision to apply to gain their trust for a new term “in response to the call of duty, and out of concern for continuing your service.”
Ould Ghazouani described the upcoming presidential elections as “an important station on the path to consolidating our democratic system,” pledging to “review plans and prepare programs in order to push our country towards further progress and development.”
Ould Ghazouani, the current president of the African Union, is considered the most likely candidate in opinion polls.
Last year, his “Al-Insaf” party achieved a landslide victory in the legislative elections, winning 107 seats out of 176 in the National Assembly, far ahead of the Islamist “Tawasul” party, which won 11 seats.
Opposition and anti-slavery activist Biram Ould Dah Abeid also announced his candidacy after he came in second place in the last presidential elections.
Ould Dah Abeid, whose IRA movement does not have a license and does not have any legal presence, expressed his concern about the smooth conduct of the electoral process.
“As we move forward, we are aware of the flaws in the electoral register and the bias and shortcomings of the Independent National Electoral Commission,” he said.
Mauritania witnessed a series of coups d’état from 1978 to 2008, before the 2019 elections marked the first democratic transition between two elected presidents.
2024-04-25 07:54:07