Mauritania: President Ghazouani Set to Win Re-Election

Facts

• According to provisional results from the Mauritanian Electoral Commission, Mohamed Ould Ghazouani has won re-election outright in the presidential vote held on Saturday.¹
• With more than 99% of the votes counted, Ghazouani secured over 56%. In second position was anti-slavery activist Biram Dah Abeid, with about 22%.²
• This means that Ghazouani has met the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff election on July 14. Last year, his El Insaf party had won 107 seats in the 176-member National Assembly.³
• Abeid said on Sunday that he wouldn't accept the provisional results, alleging irregularities, and vow to use his 'own electoral commission to proclaim the results.'⁴
• While the commission claims to have received no complaints, some opposition candidates claimed that people voted without identity cards and by proxy.⁵
• Mauritania has abundant natural resources, including gold, and is set to become a gas producer by the end of the year. However, at least 60% of its population reportedly lives in poverty.⁶

Sources: ¹Al Jazeera, ²Reuters, ³Africanews, ⁴France 24, ⁵Voice of America and ⁶Associated Press.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by Guardian. This balloting was anticipated to test Mauritania's nascent democracy because it could have triggered its first-ever civilian-to-civilian transition, but the perks of incumbency and Ghazouani's military past seem to have prevailed. If he is confirmed the winner, the actual state of democracy in Mauritania will only be known in five years.
• Narrative B, as provided by Bloomberg. Ghazouani has always been the frontrunner in the presidential race, especially after his party won a majority in parliament last year. And while he is a former army chief, this is hardly why the people gave him an outright victory. After all, he brought stability to the country amid a regional crisis and ramped up ties with the EU to produce gas.

Predictions