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Former minister Mohamed Bazoum on Friday looked set to be confirmed with a solid lead after the first round of the weekend’s presidential ballot in Niger, with the electoral commission announcing it would release the results on Saturday.
The committee had tentatively reserved Friday for the publication of the results but said it would now happen at 10 a.m. (9 a.m. GMT) on Saturday at the Palais des Congrès in Niamey.
The provisional results of 30 candidates in total showed that Bazoum, a close ally of outgoing President Mahamadou Issoufou, had won 1.4 million votes, against 675,000 for former President Mahamane Ousmane, supported by the main opposition leader, Hama Amadou, who was unable to attend due to criminal conviction.
Former Prime Ministers Seini Oumarou and Albade Abouba were on track, respectively, with 345,000 and 260,000 votes.
Insecurity has eclipsed the countryside, with Niger defeated by jihadists on its southwest border with Mali as well as on its southeast border with Nigeria. Five years of violence claimed the lives of hundreds of people and many more were displaced.
Bazoum, 60, former Minister of the Interior and Foreign Affairs, hopes to clinch victory in the first round, which would be a first in the former French colony which also hopes to see a first peaceful transfer of power between elected presidents.
Issoufou, who was elected in 2011 after the country’s last coup in 2010, is stepping down after two five-year terms.
In a New Year’s radio speech, Issoufou hailed the election as “another successful page in our country’s democratic history.”
Bazoum campaigned on promises to focus on security and education.
If a second round is necessary, it will take place on February 20.
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