Opposition candidates in Mauritania have rejected the results of Saturday’s presidential election, in which Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, the ruling party candidate and former defense minister, was declared the winner with 52.01% of the vote.
Speaking at a press conference in Nouakchott, opposition candidate Mohammed Ould Mouloud, who received just 2.44% of the votes, said, “We do not recognize the results announced by the electoral commission. We demand that results be published office by office so we can compare them with our own records,” alleging “blatant fraud in some polling stations.”
The opposition plans to hold a rally in the capital to protest the election outcome. Other candidates attending the press conference included Kane Hamidou Baba, Mohamed Ould Boubaker, and Biram Ould Dah Ould Abeid.
The results still await validation by Mauritania’s Constitutional Council. Ould Ghazouani is closely allied with outgoing President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who took power following a 2008 coup. Six candidates contested the election, considered a key step toward democratic governance since Mauritania’s independence in 1960.
