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A presidential election was held in Mauritania on 18 July 2009. Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who led the 2008 coup d'état, won a narrow first-round majority in the election, according to official results. A second round, if necessary, would have been held on 1 August 2009. Following the coup which deposed President Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi on 6 August 2008, the new junta (the High Council of State) promised that a presidential election would be held "as soon as possible".〔("Mauritania coup leader vows quick presidential poll" ). AFP. August 17, 2008.〕 The election was subsequently scheduled for 6 June 2009.〔(Mauritania to hold presidential election 6 June ). Afrique en ligne. January 23, 2009〕 Abdel Aziz, who was President of the High Council of State, stepped down in April 2009 in order to stand as a candidate. The opposition initially planned to boycott the election, arguing that the junta pursued a unilateral electoral agenda, and as a result Abdel Aziz was widely expected to win the election.〔Vincent Fertey, ("Boycott could see Aziz triumph at the polls" ), Reuters (''IOL''), April 23, 2009.〕 Later, however, the opposition agreed to participate as part of a deal with the junta in June 2009, making the election appear more competitive; as part of the deal, the election was delayed to July and a national unity government was formed to lead the country through the election period. ==Background== On 15 September 2008, the National Assembly adopted plans to hold "free and fair elections" within 12–14 months, setting the election date in late 2009 at the latest.〔Clottey, Peter (September 15, 2008). (Reactions Are Mixed After Mauritania Election Date Announcement ). VOA. 〕 The chosen date of 6 June 2009 was announced by the official media on 23 January 2009.〔("Mauritanian junta plans elections on June 6" ), AFP, 23 January 2009.〕 Months before the election, it was widely expected that Abdel Aziz would stand as a candidate; Abdel Aziz said that retired officers should be allowed to run, fuelling speculation that he might retire from the army and run as a civilian. On 4 February 2009, while still expressing support for the coup and saying that Abdallahi should not be restored to the Presidency, Ahmed Ould Daddah—the country's main opposition leader, who heads the Rally of Democratic Forces (RFD) and placed second in the 2007 presidential election—proposed that the army give up power and that anyone who was serving in the military at the time of the coup should not be allowed to run in the presidential election.〔("Coup backer wants Mauritania army to relinquish power" ), AFP, 4 February 2009.〕 Abdel Aziz announced that he would run in the election on 29 March 2009, as was widely expected, and said that he would resign as Head of State (to be succeeded by the President of the Senate) in order to stand as a candidate.〔Scott Stearns, ("Mauritania's Military Ruler Running for President" ), VOA News, 29 March 2009.〕 On 8 April, Abdel Aziz told France 24 that he intended to resign prior to 22 April, as necessary for him to stand as a candidate. He also said that the election would be held as planned on 6 June, contradicting rumors of a delay that could facilitate possible mediation aimed at securing the participation of opposition parties. According to Abdel Aziz, the election was desired by 90% of the population. Later on 8 April, members of the pro-Abdallahi National Front for the Defense of Democracy (FNDD), including the President of the National Assembly, Massaoud Ould Boulkheir, held a protest in Nouakchott. Boulkheir denounced the "unilateral electoral agenda of the putschists" and warned that "neither tanks, nor guns nor live bullets can stop our fight against the usurpation of power by force". The announcement of a new electoral commission, headed by Cheikh Saadbouh Camara, also occurred on 8 April.〔("Mauritania junta leader flags presidential bid" ), AFP, 8 April 2009.〕 Opposition parties announced they would boycott the election.〔(Mauritania opposition rejects elections as farce ). AFP. April 13, 2009〕 The Alliance for Justice and Democracy/Movement for Renewal (AJD/MR), led by Ibrahima Sarr, expressed support for the military junta, and Sarr announced on April 11, 2009, that he would be a candidate in the election. Sarr said that "the conditions are there for a free poll" and that Mauritania did not have democracy under Abdallahi's presidency.〔("Pro-coup leader to stand in Mauritania presidential poll" ), AFP, 11 April 2009.〕 Kane Hamidou Baba, Vice-President of the National Assembly and Vice-President of the RFD, also sought to stand as a candidate, although he did so without the approval of the RFD.〔("Kane Hamidou Baba serait candidat aux élections du 6juin" ), Agence Nouakchott d'Information (allAfrica.com), 15 April 2009 .〕 Due to Baba's friendly attitude towards the junta, he was expelled from the FNDD coalition. Another candidate was Sghair Ould M'Bareck, who served as Prime Minister under President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya from 2003 to 2005.〔 Abdel Aziz resigned on 15 April 2009 and was succeeded by Ba Mamadou Mbaré as Acting President.〔Ahmed Mohamed, ("Mauritania coup leader cedes power to seek office" ), Associated Press, 15 April 2009.〕 The deadline for the registration of presidential candidacies expired on 22 April; by that point none of the major opposition leaders, including RFD President Daddah, had registered, as they were all participating in the boycott. Observers concluded that the lack of a credible challenger meant that Abdul Aziz would easily win the election, although they noted that the credibility of the election itself could be threatened by the opposition boycott.〔 The Constitutional Court approved four candidacies on 27 April: those of Abdel Aziz, Ibrahima Sarr, Kane Hamidou Baba, and Sghair Ould M'Bareck.〔("Le Conseil constitutionnel rend publique la liste définitive des candidats à la prochaine élection présidentielle" ), AMI, 27 April 2009 .〕 All of these candidates were sympathetic to the coup.〔("Four cleared to run in Mauritania presidential poll" ), AFP, 28 April 2009.〕 The Union for the Republic (UPR) political party elected Abdel Aziz as its President at the party's constituent assembly on 5 May 2009;〔("Le parti de l'Union pour la République procède à l'élection de M. Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz au poste de président" ), AMI, 5 May 2009 .〕 the UPR holds a parliamentary majority.〔("Former Mauritanian junta chief elected party head" ), AFP, 6 May 2009.〕 Abdel Aziz met with Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade and envoys from the African Union on 14 May 2009; although they reportedly wanted the election to be delayed in order to encourage the opposition to participate, Abdel Aziz said after the meeting that there would be no delay. Wade also met separately with Abdallahi and Daddah.〔("Mauritania coup leader says election won't be delayed" ), AFP, 14 May 2009.〕 Daddah said at a press conference on 26 May that there could be no talks unless the junta agreed to release political prisoners and suspend the electoral timetable.〔("Mauritanian anti-coup parties want election freeze before talks" ), AFP, 26 May 2009.〕 Shortly before the scheduled date of the election, in reconciliation talks on 31 May 2009 it was agreed to postpone the election to 21 July and 4 August;〔(Mauritania election postponed till July 21 after Senegal mediation ). ''People's Daily''. May 31, 2009.〕 this was later denied by the government, and on 2 June 2009 it was announced that it had been postponed to 18 July and 1 August. A final agreement between the junta and the opposition was signed on 4 June. The agreement provided for Abdallahi's formal resignation as President, the installation of a national unity government that would serve briefly prior to the election, and set the date of the election as 18 July. As a result of the agreement, all of the major parties were expected to participate in the election.〔("Mauritanian coup leaders, opposition, agree end to crisis" ), AFP, 4 June 2009.〕 Ely Ould Mohamed Vall, who headed the 2005–2007 military junta, announced on 6 June 2009 that he would be a presidential candidate, running as an independent. He condemned the 2008 coup, asserting that it was "wrong and there was no reason for it" and that it had "provoked a particularly dangerous situation in our country". He stressed, however, that his candidacy was not directed against any particular individual, and he said that his goal, if elected, was "to build a reconciled country that is politically and economically viable and stable". He also said that he would "probably no longer be interested in public affairs" if not for the 2008 coup.〔("Past junta leader to run for Mauritania president" ), AFP, 6 June 2009.〕 The RFD announced on 9 June that Daddah had been designated as the party's presidential candidate by a special party congress. Observers considered Abdel Aziz, Daddah, and Vall to be the key candidates.〔("Mauritanian opposition leader to run for president" ), AFP, 9 June 2009.〕 The moderate Islamist National Rally for Reform and Development (RNRD), which opposed the coup and participated in the FNDD, designated its President, Mohamed Jemil Ould Mansour, as its candidate on 14 June. Although the party chose to run its own candidate, it said that it would continue coordinating with the FNDD.〔("Islamist to run in Mauritania election" ), AFP, 14 June 2009.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Mauritanian presidential election, 2009」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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