By Ebi Kesiena
Incumbent Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani is leading the preliminary results of Saturday’s presidential election, with over 90% of the votes counted.
El Ghazouani has garnered 55.82% of the vote, according to the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI), which announced the figures on Sunday.
Opposition candidate Biram Dah Abeid is in second place with 22.35%, followed by Hamadi Ould Sid’ El Moctar, leader of the National Rally for Reform and Development Party, with 13%. Parliamentarian El-Aid Ould Mohamedan is fourth with 3.46%.
Politician Mamadou Boukari is in fifth place with 2.24%, while opposition candidate and physician Outouma Soumare ranks sixth with 2.14%. Finance Inspector Mohamed Lamine Mourteji El Wafi is last with 0.98%.
Meanwhile, opposition candidate Dah Abeid has refused to recognize the results, calling it an “electoral coup.” He stated that his campaign is investigating the results announced by the commission and will not accept any “fraud.”
On Saturday, Mauritanians voted to elect a new president from among seven candidates. There are 1.9 million registered voters in the North African country, which has a population of approximately 4.5 million, according to commission figures.
If no candidate secures a majority, the top two candidates will proceed to a run-off on July 13.
However, the election commission is expected to announce the preliminary results later on Sunday.
