Niger: Issoufou declared landslide winner of boycotted runoff

Niger’s incumbent President Mahamadou Issoufou has been declared winner of the March 20 presidential runoff having garnered 92.5% of the total votes cast. A victory that allows him to serve his second term in office as President.

The electoral commission announced Issoufou’s victory at an event largely attended by members of the ruling party.

Niger President Issoufou wins re-election in run-off -commission https://t.co/K9BKnnbF0l #World

— Lebanese (@lebanesepress) March 22, 2016

The opposition’s candidate Hama Amadou got 7.5% according to the results. This was not surprising against the background that the opposition had announced a boycott of the runoff.

The opposition said they would not accept the results of the polls after complaining of unfair treatement metted out to the candidate, Hama Amadou.

The former Prime Minister and Speaker of Parliament contested the first round of the elections from jail where he was being held on charges of baby trafficking. He insists the charges are trumped-up but the government justifies the charges.

Due to his ill health status, Amadou was flown to France to receive medical treatment just days to the poll run off.

Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world despite large deposits of Uranium that it sists on. It also faces its fair share of the Boko Haram insurgency in the Lake Chad region.