Mali: the challenges of the second round of the legislative elections

Text by: RFI Follow

This Sunday, April 19, Malian voters are again called to the polls to renew their Assembly. The second round of the legislative elections takes place in a special atmosphere, in the midst of a global coronavirus pandemic and as the security crisis continues in the north and center of the country. There are still 125 deputies to elect this Sunday.

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Out of 147 deputies, 22 were elected in the first round. Among them, Soumaïla Cissé in her constituency in Niafunké and this despite her absence, because the leader of the opposition was kidnapped by a jihadist group on March 25.

Eight out of 12 constituencies in which deputies have already been elected are in the north of the country. In Kidal, the RPM lists, the presidential party, prevail. In the three constituencies of Tessalit, Tin-Essako and Abeibara, the candidates' scores exceed 87%. This Sunday, it remains to elect more than 3/4 of the deputies . In Bamako, in particular, where the RPM and its allies came first in 4 out of 6 communes.

Despite the jihadist attacks on certain polling stations in the first round or the Covid-19 pandemic, "  there was consensus during the concertation framework for the organization of a second round  ", explains Yaya Sangaré, the Minister of Communication. Some opposition political parties like URD and LDC say they were not invited to this meeting.

The Malian opposition dreams of a big night with the aim of forcing President Ibrahim Boubacar Kéita to cohabit. But in reality, taken individually, no Malian political party has the means to largely dominate the others.

In fact, in many electoral districts, there are opposition and majority candidates on the same list. Together, they intend to win seats and, at the end, everyone will return to their camp. It is therefore at the end of the results that the political blocs will form. And the page of a National Assembly that had to be renewed since 2018 will finally be turned.

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