Nigeria: INEC Addresses Poor Voter Turnout
Conrad Omodiagbe
Ahead of the 2023 general elections in Nigeria, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has given perceived reasons for poor voter turnout, as well as potential remedies to the disenfranchisement of voters. Speaking at a screening before the Senate Committee on INEC to confirm his second tenure, the Commission’s National Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, revealed that […]
Kazakhstan Sets Date For Parliamentary Polls
Conrad Omodiagbe
The Central Election Commission (CEC) of Kazakhstan has released a statement encouraging Kazakh citizens to vote in the upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled for January 10 next year, the KazInform news agency reported. “If you are a citizen of Kazakhstan who has reached the age of 18 on the day of voting and has a right […]
US: Trump Will Concede On One Condition
Conrad Omodiagbe
US President Donald Trump has said, on Thursday, that he will leave the White House if the Electoral College formalises President-Elect Joe Biden’s victory — even as he insisted such a decision would be a “mistake.” According to numbers from the polls, Biden won the presidential election with 306 electoral college votes––many more than the […]
Violence Mounts As Uganda Prepares For 2021
Conrad Omodiagbe
As Uganda continues to protest against the candidacy of its longtime ruler, Yoweri Museveni in the country’s upcoming polls, the death toll seems to be on a steady rise as the press complains about targeted attacks and harassment. Death Toll Rises To 45 Following Bobi Wine’s Arrest According to information gathered by the Washington Post, […]
What Happened In Burkina Faso Elections?
Farida Adamu
Elections for the presidency and legislature of Burkina Faso held on the 22nd of November where up to 13 candidates contested for office. The vote had a 50% voter turnout with over 3 million votes cast. Unfortunately, in some territories in the north of Burkina Faso, nearly one-fifth of the country was excluded from voting due to violent extremism. President Roch Marc […]
US Election: A Transition Will Now Begin
Farida Adamu
After weeks of delays and a few legal challenges, President Donald Trump has told his team to clear the way for a transition to begin for a Joe Biden presidency in the US. The General Services Administration(GSA) in light of this, has sent the Biden team a letter with official resources that will facilitate the transition. However, this is not […]
Democracy Watch: Guinea Bans Political Protests
Farida Adamu
The government in Guinea has announced a ban on political demonstrations across the country until further notice. This move comes after the leader of the Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea party, Cellou Dalein Diallo, called for a protest to be held on Wednesday due to the arrest of several opposition members. The government of […]
Burkina Faso Elections: Issues To Consider
Farida Adamu
Elections for the presidency and legislature of Burkina Faso are scheduled to hold on 22 November, 2020. The elections come at a peculiar time and with a lot of challenges as the country faces numerous socio-economic challenges. What are the issues arising ahead of election day in Burkina Faso? Election Security: The security crisis in […]
Nigerian Governor Wins Another Election Case
Conrad Omodiagbe
The Nigerian Supreme Court, yesterday, affirmed the election of Douye Diri as the authentic governor of Bayelsa State. A seven-member panel of justices of the apex court in a unanimous judgment dismissed the six appeals, which sought to oust Governor Diri and the Deputy Governor, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, following the withdrawal of applications by counsel to […]
Nigeria And The Possibility Of Mail-In Ballots
Conrad Omodiagbe
Following the record-making influence the mail-in ballot system had on the recently concluded US presidential elections, the people of Nigeria are calling for a change heading into the 2023 polls, but several structural challenges might make this difficult. America, arguably the world’s largest democracy, successfully conducted one of the biggest general elections of the year. […]
US: Trump Has No Plans To Concede
Conrad Omodiagbe
Following weeks of back and forths, the US President Donald Trump has appeared to publicly acknowledge the victory of his Democratic rival, Joe Biden, as he makes further allegations of election rigging. While verified sources have announced Biden’s win at the polls, with several international leaders offering their congratulations and support for the new government, […]
Democracy Watch: The Situation In Ivory Coast
Conrad Omodiagbe
As violent clashes continue in Ivory Coast following its heavily disputed presidential polls, journalists have been arrested, with allegations piling up against President Alassane Ouattara’s government. Less than a month after the October 31 presidential elections in Ivory Coast, reports reaching the surface continue to point towards a gross violation of human rights and intimidation […]
Percentage of Nigerian Women In The 2019 Polls
Conrad Omodiagbe
Recent data provided by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has once again confirmed the exclusionary nature of Nigeria’s political system when it comes to women. According to the commission, women made up only 13 per cent of candidates that vied for different positions in the 2019 Nigerian general elections. This information was contained in […]
Last Lap: African Elections To Watch As 2020 Ends
Farida Adamu
No fewer than 13 African elections were scheduled to hold on the continent in 2020. Many were postponed, including the presidential elections in Ethiopia, which was moved by a year and has sparked tensions in the Horn of Africa. Somalia, which should have held one-man-one-vote elections for the first time in history did not only take back the decision […]
Moldova Makes History With Female President-Elect
Conrad Omodiagbe
An opposition candidate in Moldova, Maia Sandu, is set to make history, defeating incumbent President Igor Dodon in a run-off vote to become the country’s first female leader. According to preliminary results announced by Moldova’s Central Election Commission, Sandu, a former World Bank economist and Moldova’s former prime minister scored an emphatic victory at the […]
What Nigeria Can Learn From The US Election
Conrad Omodiagbe
After what seemed like a never-ending vote-counting period, the United States 2020 presidential elections might be over. While the outgoing president and Republican candidate, Donald Trump, has filed suits aimed at overturning the results of the polls, this historic election offers the electorate in Nigeria with useful lessons ahead of the country’s 2023 general elections. […]
Libya Calls For New Constitution
Conrad Omodiagbe
Elected officials in Libya have called for a new constitution to be approved before national elections can be held. This comes after a recent resolution between the country’s opposing factions that resulted in a new election date for the country, the first in years. These rival factions at UN-led talks in Tunisia had agreed to […]
US Election: Homeland Security Speaks
Farida Adamu
The US Department of Homeland Security has in, a statement, contradicted Donald Trump’s claim of electoral fraud in the just concluded presidential and congressional elections, saying there is no evidence of such fraud. “The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history. Right now, across the country, election officials are reviewing and double-checking the entire […]
Ethiopia: What is Going on?
Farida Adamu
Heavy fighting is ongoing in the north of Ethiopia in the Tigray region––one of Ethiopia’s autonomous states––after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered the deployment of troops to the area and declared a 6-month state of emergency. The leading political party in the region, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) has been accused of attacking the […]