MAURITANIA: POLITICS - President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is sure to win re-election but his main challenge will be to achieve a convincing turnout in polls his main rivals are boycotting

Record ID: 347165

  • Title: MAURITANIA: POLITICS - President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is sure to win re-election but his main challenge will be to achieve a convincing turnout in polls his main rivals are boycotting
  • Date: 20th June 2014
  • Summary: NOUAKCHOTT, MAURITANIA (JUNE 19, 2014) (REUTERS) PEOPLE HOLDING THE PORTRAIT OF MAURITANIA'S PRESIDENT, MOHAMED OULD ABDEL AZIZ, DURING HIS LAST RALLY AT THE END OF THE ELECTORAL CAMPAIGN AZIZ ON PODIUM, WAVING TO THE CROWD AND WALKING PEOPLE HOLDING AZIZ PHOTO (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MAURITANIAN PRESIDENT, MOHAMED OULD ABDEL AZIZ, SAYING: "It's a fact recognised by the in
  • Embargoed: 5th July 2014 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Mauritania
  • Country: Mauritania
  • Topics: Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA8LB6AGYWYG4Y5ZPI4H9GLQZG
  • Story Text: Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz is sure to win re-election on Saturday (June 21) but his main challenge will be to achieve a convincing turnout in polls his main rivals are boycotting.
    Abdel Aziz - a Western ally in the fight against al Qaeda-linked Islamists in West Africa - has run the nation straddling black and Arab Africa since he won a 2009 vote after leading a coup the year before.
    The bulk of the opposition boycotted last year's parliamentary elections and talks to try to persuade them to take part in Saturday's vote broke down in April, leaving Abdel Aziz, a former head of the presidential guard, no major rivals.
    Two weeks of campaigning ended late on Thursday having failed to rouse much enthusiasm across the desert nation on the Western rim of the Sahara, where just over 1.3 million people will be eligible to vote.
    Mauritania has reserves of iron ore, copper and gold and is trying to boost investor interest in its oil and gas.
    Abdel Aziz's face dominates billboards lining dusty roads in the capital of the Islamic Republic and few see any serious threat to the hold on power enjoyed by the former head of the presidential guard.
    Abdel Aziz came to power in August 2008 when he ousted President Sidi Mohamed Ould Cheikh Abdellahi, Mauritania's first democratically elected president, whose short stint as leader was undone by fighting within his own party.
    He then won a 2009 election that was contested by the opposition. Western nations soon re-engaged with Mauritania's military, which is considered one of the region's best and has taken a strong stand against Islamist groups in the country and neighbouring Mali.
    At an election rally on Thursday, Abdel Aziz took the credit for the army.

    "It's a fact recognised by the international community and all the countries, that Mauritania's army is the strongest out of all armies in neighbouring countries. And you know what situation we were in before (I came to power), we didn't have an army, it wasn't trained, there were no means, it was completely left to ruin."
    On behalf of the African Union, Abdel Aziz secured a ceasefire between Mali's army and rebels last month.
    The four challengers in the boycott-reduced field are former government minister Boidel Ould Houmeid, anti-slavery campaigner Biram Ould Abeid, Ibrahima Sarr, a challenger from the 2009 vote, and Mint Moulaye Idriss, an administrator at Mauritania's national press agency and the country's second female candidate.
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