AFRICA
Conrad Omodiagbe
DRC: Opposition calls for Elections Three Years Early
A year after electorates headed to the polls in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), opposition leader and former presidential candidate, Martin Fayulu, has called for early elections to be held. This is despite the election cycle of 4 years which determines that the next elections in the DRC be in 2023. Fayulu, who contested […]
Conrad Omodiagbe
Nigeria: NGO Warns Against Election Violence
Ahead of the state governorship elections scheduled to hold on September 19, 2020, in Edo State, Nigeria, global human rights organisation, Amnesty International has called on the Federal Government to fulfil its obligation to Nigerians by preventing violence and upholding human rights in the state. In a statementfrom its Country Director, Osai Ojigho, titled ‘Nigeria: […]
Conrad Omodiagbe
Nigeria: Election Body defends Party Exclusion
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Nigeria has reacted to the recent nullification of the Bayelsa state governorship election following a petition by the Advanced Nigeria Democratic Party (ANDP), which argued that it was unlawfully excluded from participating in the elections. Speaking on behalf of the Commission, Festus Okoye, the National Commissioner and Chairman, […]
Conrad Omodiagbe
South Africa: Independent Candidacy Not A Priority
Independent candidates interested in running for provincial and national elections in South Africa might have to wait a little while longer, as a timeline set to amend the country’s Electoral Act has been put on hold to address constitutional amendments that might make it a possibility. The country’s Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi made this […]
Farida Adamu
Democracy Watch: What is Going On in Mali?
The President of Mali, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, resigned on Tuesday, August 17, 2020, after being taken into custody by military officials in what appeared to be a successful coup. This move comes after several weeks of protests by Malian citizens demanding the resignation of the president over corruption, economic instability and the failure of the […]
Conrad Omodiagbe
Liberia gets New Election Monitoring Organisation
As Liberia prepares for its upcoming senatorial elections, a new group comprising of experts on election-related issues has been set up to provide civic and voter education, and also monitor electoral activities in the volatile East African country. The second election monitoring organization other than the Election Coordination Committee (ECC), this new group, the Center […]
Farida Adamu
Nigeria: Another Election Annulled
A tribunal sitting led by Justice Yunusa Musa in the capital of Nigeria, Abuja, has annulled the November 16th, 2019 election of Duoye Diri of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as the Governor of Bayelsa state. Recall that in February, Mr Diri was sworn in as governor after the Supreme Court sacked David Lyon of […]