By RFIPubliée on 24-06-2019Modified on 24-06-2019 at 01:38

The presidential candidate in Mauritania, Mohamed ould Ghazouani, was elected with 52% of the vote in the first round, according to the results announced Sunday evening by the Electoral Commission. The opposition disputes these results.

A general will therefore succeed another general at the head of Mauritania. The Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) declared winner Mohamed ould Ghazouani Sunday night, with 52.01% of the votes on all polling stations.

He is followed by four opponents, including anti-slavery activist Biram Dah Abeid, who has 18.58% of the vote, and former Prime Minister Sidi Mohamed Ould Boubacar with 17.87% of the vote. The other candidates do not reach the 10%.

These results have yet to be submitted for validation to the Constitutional Council after consideration of possible appeals, while the four opposition candidates announced that they would use all legal channels to challenge them.

A career in the shadow of Mohamed ould Abdel Aziz

Shaven skull and thin glasses on the nose, it is an erased man who arrives today at the head of power. A career soldier, he was posted to the second military intelligence bureau when he took part in the 2005 coup against President Ould Taya. Discreet, he is then part of those who count in the junta.

At his side, Mohamed ould Abdel Aziz met at the military academy of Meknes in Morocco at the beginning of the 1980s. It is with him that he overthrows again in 2008 Sidi ould Sheikh Abdallahi, the civilian they had brought to the power a year earlier.

Named chief of staff after this new coup d'etat, before spending a few months at the Ministry of Defense, Mohamed ould Ghazouani has since evolved in the shadow of the outgoing president. He enjoys a good reputation in the military and has established himself as a key man of the security apparatus.

Born into a marabout family from the center of the country, he is described by those who knew him as " a fine, ingenious and courteous man ". " A soldier who knows where the real power is and has never sought the light of the presidency, " says a foreign diplomat. A man whose style will inevitably cut with that of his predecessor.

Continuity or alternation?

A few months ago, 62-year-old Mohamed ould Ghazouani said he did not intend to introduce himself, and showed his unwavering support for the outgoing president, his fellow traveler for years. Finally his candidacy was imposed and he received all the official support necessary to campaign: that of several ministers committed to his side, and of course that of Mohamed ould Abdel Aziz, who still displayed with him Sunday morning to claim victory even before the announcement of the results.

Do more, or better, than Mohamed ould Abdel Aziz and continue his work, it is what he cleverly promised during the campaign. Will it in fact incur continuity or a form of alternation? The question remains unresolved at this point. Will he be loyal to Mohamed ould Abdel Aziz now that he occupies the presidential chair or the team they have formed will he disintegrate? " Mohamed ould Ghazouani is not the type to challenge the achievements or to threaten the interests of each other, " says a former diplomat, before adding: " It is not a straw man either . He will never be allowed to walk on his feet. "

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