The government in Mauritania has confirmed parliamentary elections to be held on September 1 according to an official statement issued on Thursday. Even as key political participants have fallen out over the newly-created electoral commission.
Mauritanians will go to the polls to elect members of parliament, alongside regional and local councilors in the upcoming votes.
In April, the main opposition party of the country vowed to contest the legislative and municipal elections after boycotting the country’s previous votes.
The National Forum for Democracy and Unity (FNDU), considered a radical opposition wing, who in the past had declared their intent to not partake in any polls conducted by President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz and his government, have signaled they will participate in the September ballots.
The formation of the new electoral commission set up in April without some members of the radical opposition has sparked tension in the country in recent months.
An appeal for the commission to be disbanded has been launched by four political parties at the Supreme Court seeking to reverse the action.
Having ascended to power through a coup in 2008, President Aziz was elected the following year and will later be re-elected again in 2014 for another second five-year term.
In August of last year, Aziz spearheaded a controversial referendum to implement reforms and constitutional amendment including the country’s Senate, a new national anthem, and flag. The votes were boycotted by the FNDU.
Neba Benson,
BaretaNews Foreign Correspondent/Analyst
