President wins second term in Sahel state

Mauritania’s president has been re-elected for a second term
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Mohamed Ould Ghazouani has been re-elected in Mauritania, getting over 56% of the vote

Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani has emerged victorious from Saturday’s presidential election, the National Independent Electoral Commission announced on Monday morning.

Ghazouani was re-elected with over 56.12% of the vote, beating six opposition candidates, according to the electoral commission’s website.

Human rights activist Biram Dah Abeid secured second place with 22.10% of the vote, while Hamadi Sidi el-Mokhtar of the Islamist Tewassoul party came in third with 12.76%.

READ MORE: Another Sahel state to elect president

Nearly two million people registered to cast their ballots in the West African nation ahead of the election, which registered a turnout of 55.39% for Saturday’s vote.

Earlier on Sunday, Abeid rejected the provisional results, citing allegations of irregularities and calling it an “electoral coup.”

“We’ll not accept these results from the so-called independent electoral commission. We’ll use our own electoral commission to proclaim the results,” Abeid said during a news conference.

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Ghazouani, a former army chief, assumed office in 2019 following the first democratic transition in a country with a long history of coups and military-backed regimes dating back to 1978. 

Prior to the election last weekend, El Mokhtar cautioned that his party would reject the results if any rigging was suspected. In the 2019 election, some opposition candidates raised doubts about the credibility of the vote, which sparked minor protests.

Ghazouani has pledged to accelerate investment in energy and mining. He also plans to establish a national agency to coordinate training, employment, education, and financing for small and medium-sized businesses to boost youth employment. He has also promised to tackle militant threats that are escalating in several of its Sahel neighbors, including Mali.