General elections were held in Niger on 21 February 2016,Global elections calendar NDI with a presidential run-off held on 20 March. A total of 15 candidates ran for the presidency, with incumbent President Mahamadou Issoufou running for re-election for a second term. There were two main opposition candidates also vying for the top post, Seyni Oumarou of the National Movement for the Society of Development (MNSD), who lost to Issoufou in 2011, and Hama Amadou of MODEN/FA, who has been campaigning from prison since November 2015. Most of the opposition agreed to align for the second round to back the second-placed candidate against Issoufou.

Niger faced a string of attacks by various insurgents, most notably Boko Haram in the preceding months, and security and poverty alleviation were central to most candidates' campaigns. Various observers predicted minor violence from the opposition who accused the president of rigging the elections.

Issoufou placed first in the first round, but fell just short of an outright majority, necessitating a second round vote in which he faced Hama Amadou. The opposition boycotted the second round, and Issoufou was re-elected with an overwhelming majority (92.49%).

Electoral system The President of Niger was elected using the two-round system.Republic of Niger IFES

The 171 members of the National Assembly were elected by two methods; 158 members were elected from eight multi-member constituencies based on the seven regions and Niamey by party-list proportional representation. Additionally, eight seats are reserved for national minorities and five seats (one per continent) for Nigeriens living abroad, all elected in single-member constituencies by first-past-the-post voting.Electoral system IPU

Presidential candidates Mahamadou Issoufou, the incumbent president, ran for a second term. He was designated as the candidate of his party, the Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism (PNDS), on 7 November 2015."Niger's President Issoufou chosen to run for second term", Reuters, 7 November 2015. Seyni Oumarou, former Prime Minister (2007–2009), was designated as the candidate of the MNSD on 29 November 2015."Niger's main opposition names Oumarou as election candidate", Reuters, 29 November 2015. Amadou Cissé, former Prime Minister (1996–1997), candidate for the Union for Democracy and the Republic. Abdou Labo was designated as the candidate of the Democratic and Social Convention (CDS) on 14 November 2015."CDS Rahama : Abdou Labo investit candidat aux élections présidentielles de 2016", ActuNiger, 15 November 2015 . Mahamane Ousmane, former president (1993–1996), candidate for the Nigerien Movement for Democratic Renewal (MNDR)."L'ex-président Mahamane Ousmane candidat à la présidentielle" , Agence France-Presse, 30 December 2015 . Hama Amadou, former prime minister (1995–1996, 2000–2007), returned from exile on 14 November 2015, planning to stand as the presidential candidate of his party, the Nigerien Democratic Movement for an African Federation, but he was immediately arrested upon arrival at the airport in Niamey in connection with the allegations of involvement in baby-trafficking that had led him to flee into exile in 2014."Tensions flare as Niger opposition candidate arrested on return", Agence France-Presse, 14 November 2015.

On 9 January 2016, it was announced that the Constitutional Court had cleared 15 candidates to run. All of the major candidates were approved, including Hama Amadou, who was still in jail over charges that he alleged were politically motivated, and Abdou Labo, who was not imprisoned but was also facing charges related to the baby-trafficking investigation. One minor candidate, Abdoul-Karim Bakasso, was barred from running on the grounds that he had not submitted a medical certificate."15 candidates approved for Niger presidential race", Agence France-Presse, 9 January 2016.

An appeals court refused Amadou's request to be released on 11 January.Abdoulaye Massalaki, "Niger presidential candidate denied release from prison", Reuters, 11 January 2016. Speaking through his lawyer, Amadou said afterward that he was a political prisoner and would not pursue any further appeal."Niger presidential candidate declares himself political prisoner", Reuters, 13 January 2016.

Results President Provisional results released on 26 February 2016 showed President Issoufou with about 48% of the vote, falling just short of a first round majority. Imprisoned opposition leader Hama Amadou placed second with 17.8% of the vote. With no candidate winning an outright majority, a second round was planned to be held on 20 March 2016. Although Amadou received a much smaller percentage of the first round vote, most of the other major opposition candidates were expected to support him in the second round.Abdoulaye Massalaki, "Niger's Issoufou faces run-off against jailed opposition leader", Reuters, 26 February 2016.

Speaking on behalf of COPA 2016, the opposition coalition supporting Amadou, Seyni Oumarou (who placed third and backed Amadou for the second round), announced on 8 March that the coalition was boycotting the vote and withdrawing its representatives from the electoral commission. Hassoumi Massaoudou, the Minister of the Interior, said in response that the second round vote would be held regardless of whether the opposition participated. Noting that some of the first round candidates had backed Issoufou, Massaoudou argued that the opposition "withdrew to avoid being beaten".Boureima Hama and Patrick Fort, "Niger opposition drops out of presidential run-off: coalition", Agence France-Presse, 8 March 2016. Nevertheless, Amadou's lawyer said on 11 March that he would still be a candidate.Abdoulaye Massalaki, "Niger's opposition chief Amadou to stand in presidential run-off", Reuters, 11 March 2016.

Subsequent events were dominated by Amadou's health problems. After a medical crisis in which he was said to have briefly lost consciousness, he was moved from the prison in Filingue to Niamey; he was then taken to Paris for treatment on 16 March."Jailed Niger opposition leader flown to Paris for medical treatment", Reuters, 16 March 2016. COPA again called for a boycott on 18 March."Niger opposition group calls for boycott of run-off vote", Reuters, 18 March 2016.

The second round was held on 20 March 2016 amidst an opposition boycott. Given the boycott, results announced on 22 March showed an unsurprisingly large victory for President Issoufou, who was credited with 92.5% of the vote. Turnout was placed at 60%. Meanwhile, on 22 March COPA denounced the election as fraudulent and rejected the results, saying that Niger would "have no legitimate president" after Issoufou's first term ended."Boycott helps Niger President Issoufou win re-election", Reuters, 22 March 2016.

National Assembly In the parliamentary election, parties supporting Issoufou won a majority, with 118 out of 171 seats in the National Assembly."Niger opposition boycotts meeting of new parliament", Agence France-Presse, 24 March 2016.Mathieu Olivier, "Niger : l’opposition boycotte la séance inaugurale de la nouvelle Assemblée nationale", Jeune Afrique, 24 March 2016 .

Reactions Domestic Opposition parties rejected the partial election results released by the electoral commission, claiming discrepancies between the declared results and their own tallies. Amadou Cissé, the Union for Democracy and the Republic candidate, challenged the results and accused the government for creating "thousands of polling stations" to skew the outcome.

International African Union – The African Union team of 40 observers was satisfied with the electoral process of the first round of elections despite all the logistical delays.

Aftermath When the National Assembly began meeting for its new term on 24 March 2016, the opposition deputies boycotted it. Ousseini Tinni, a PNDS Deputy, was elected as President of the National Assembly on 25 March 2016.Mathieu Olivier, "Niger : Ousseini Tinni, député du PNDS, nouveau président de l’Assemblée nationale", Jeune Afrique, 25 March 2016 . With the opposition absent, Tinni received 109 votes in favor and six against, with three abstentions."Tinni Ousseini élu président de l’Assemblee nationale", Niger Inter, 25 March 2016 .

The Niamey Court of Appeal issued an order for the "provisional release" of Amadou on 29 March 2016, although by that point he had already been out of the country for nearly two weeks."Jailed Niger opposition granted provisional release after election", Reuters, 29 March 2016.

On 30 March 2016, the Constitutional Court validated the results and formally declared that Issoufou was re-elected for a second term. Final results showed Issoufou with 92.51% and Amadou with 7.49%, while turnout was placed at 59.80%."Presidentielle au Niger : La Cour constitutionnelle valide la réélection d'Issoufou Mahamadou", ActuNiger, 30 March 2016 . On 2 April 2016, Issoufou was sworn in and reappointed Brigi Rafini as Prime Minister."Niger ministers resign after presidential inauguration: radio", Reuters, 2 April 2016.

The composition of the new government was announced on 11 April. Although Issoufou had previously called for the opposition to join a national unity government, ultimately no one from the opposition was included in the government, which continued to be dominated by members of the PNDS. Three minor presidential candidates who had backed Issoufou for the second round were appointed to the government: Ibrahim Yacoubou as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Moctar Kassoum as Minister of Lands and Urban Development, and Magagi Laouan as Minister of Humanitarian Action and Disaster Management."Composition du gouvernement de la République du Niger : La Renaissance « acte 2 » en marche", ActuNiger, 11 April 2016 .

The opposition deputies eventually took their seats in the National Assembly. In late April they formed two parliamentary groups and put forward candidates for the posts in the Bureau of the National Assembly which had been reserved for the opposition and therefore left vacant, enabling those posts (Second Vice-President, Third Vice-President, Quaestor, and two Parliamentary Secretaries) to be filled."Assemblée nationale : Présentation de deux groupes parlementaires de l’opposition", ActuNiger, 25 April 2016 .

References