Blantyre, Malawi | AFP | Malawians will return to the polls on July 2 for a presidential election re-run ordered by the country’s top court, which annulled last year’s vote results because of irregularities, the electoral commission announced Monday. “Following the Constitutional Court ruling on February 3 that nullified the presidential …
Read More »From sex scandals to impeachment: the unsinkable Donald Trump
Washington, United States | AFP | Impeached for abuse of power, President Donald Trump’s acquittal by the Senate is just the latest escape for the real estate tycoon turned politician who has repeatedly defied the odds. The following are some of the events that could have torpedoed his political fortunes: – …
Read More »The panama hat and the keffiyeh – Guinea Bissau’s presidential contenders
Bissau, Guinea-Bissau | AFP | Voters in Guinea-Bissau have a choice between two old political hands in Sunday’s presidential election run-off, although both have very different styles and backgrounds. Here are profiles of the two men: – Domingos Simoes Pereira – Former prime minister Pereira has been politically active since his …
Read More »Protests, unrest mar Algeria’s disputed presidential vote
Algiers, Algeria | AFP | Algeria held a tense presidential election Thursday meant to bring stability after a year of turmoil, but voting was marred as protesters stormed polling stations and staged a mass rally in the capital. The unpopular vote comes almost 10 months into a street protest movement that …
Read More »Trump on impeachment brink, but far from falling
Washington, United States | AFP | For a man on the brink of becoming only the third US president to be impeached, Donald Trump sure sounds confident. “You’re so lucky I became your president,” he boomed to cheering supporters late Tuesday in Hershey, Pennsylvania. “A regular president would have been under …
Read More »Guinea-Bissau votes on new president to break political deadlock
Bissau, Guinea-Bissau | AFP | Guinea-Bissau voted in a presidential election on Sunday which is hoped to solve a long-running leadership crisis in the coup-prone and impoverished West African country. The vote caps four years of political chaos as incumbent Jose Mario Vaz, 62 — who is running for re-election — …
Read More »Algerians protest against December presidential poll
Algiers, Algeria | AFP | Hundreds of Algerians took to the streets of the capital Thursday to protest against next month’s presidential election, despite a crackdown during which dozens were arrested. Around 300 protesters chanted “We will have freedom!” and “We will not retreat!” and banged on pots as motorists showed …
Read More »Tunisia gears up for presidential poll steeped in uncertainty
Tunis, Tunisia | AFP | Tunisia will hold on Sunday its second free presidential election by universal suffrage since the 2011 uprising that toppled an autocratic regime, with growing uncertainty over who will reach the next round. Twenty-six candidates are in the race, including the incumbent prime minister and a media …
Read More »Five things to know about the Tunisian presidential poll
Tunis, Tunisia | AFP | Here are five things to know about the Tunisian presidential election set for September 15: – Who are the candidates? – Of 98 nominees, 26 candidates were confirmed by the Independent Higher Authority for Elections (ISIE) — roughly the same number to enter the race in …
Read More »Tunisia airs first ‘great debate’ ahead of presidential poll
Tunis, Tunisia | AFP | Days before the first round of Tunisia’s presidential election, the fledgling democracy on Saturday began three nights of televised debates between the candidates, a rare event in the Arab world. The showdown between the 26 hopefuls over three nights is seen as the highlight of the …
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