1999 Nigerien general election

General elections were held in Niger in 1999; the first-round of the presidential elections was held on 17 October, with a run-off held alongside National Assembly elections on 24 November. The elections followed a coup d'état on 9 April, in which Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara, who had led an earlier coup in January 1996 and won disputed presidential elections, was assassinated. Coup leader Daouda Mallam Wanké initiated a transitional period that concluded with the victory of Mamadou Tandja, the candidate of the National Movement for the Development of Society (MNSD), over Mahamadou Issoufou, the candidate of the Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism (PNDS), in the run-off.[1] The vote for the first National Assembly of the Fifth Republic, which had originally been scheduled for October, but delayed in August,[2] also saw a victory for the MNSD, which won 38 of the 83 seats. It formed a coalition with the Democratic and Social Convention in order to gain a majority in the Assembly.[3]

1999 Nigerien general election
Presidential election
17 October 1999 (first round)
24 November 1999 (second round)
 
Nominee Mamadou Tandja Mahamadou Issoufou
Party MNSD PNDS
Popular vote 1,061,731 710,923
Percentage 59.89% 40.11%
President before election

Daouda Malam Wanké
Military

 Elected President

Mamadou Tandja
MNSD

Parliamentary election
All 83 seats in the National Assembly
42 seats needed for a majority
Party % Seats +/–
MNSD 34.65 38 New
CDS-Rahama 17.23 17 New
PNDS 21.47 16 New
RDP-Jama'a 10.95 8 New
ANDP-Zaman Lahiya 6.61 4 -4
President of the National Assembly before President of the National Assembly after
Moutari Moussa
Independent		 Mahamane Ousmane
CDS-Rahama
Politics of Niger
Constitution (suspended)
Government
National Assembly (dissolved)
Judiciary
Administrative divisions
Elections
Foreign relations

Background

Following the April 1999 coup, Wanké called for new presidential and parliamentary elections late in the year and barred the participation of candidates from the military.[1] The elections were overseen and organised by a sixty-member Independent National Election Commission, appointed by the military government with representatives from political parties and civil society groups on 27 May 1999.[4]

A new constitution was approved by a referendum held on 18 July 1999 and promulgated 8 August.[1] The elections were originally scheduled for 7 October 1999, but were delayed in August 1999.[5]

Presidential candidates

Eight candidates sought to run in the presidential elections, including two rival candidates from the Rally for Democracy and Progress-Jama'a (RDP), which had been the ruling party under Maïnassara; Hamid Algabid and Amadou Cissé. It was left to the Court of State to decide which of these two candidates could run.[6] On 3 September the Court released its list of approved candidates; seven were approved, including Algabid, while Cissé's candidacy was rejected.[1]

Candidates eliminated in the first round sought to influence the outcome of the second round by endorsing one of the two remaining candidates; Djermakoye announced his support for Issoufou on 4 November, Ousmane announced his support for Tandja on 5 November, and Algabid and Djibo announced their support for Issoufou on 6 November (although some members of the RDP objected to Algabid's support for Issoufou and backed Tandja instead on 7 November).[1]

Results

President
CandidatePartyFirst roundSecond round
Votes%Votes%
Mamadou TandjaNational Movement for the Development of Society617,32032.331,061,73159.89
Mahamadou IssoufouNigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism435,04122.79710,92340.11
Mahamane OusmaneDemocratic and Social Convention429,82722.51
Hamid AlgabidRally for Democracy and Progress206,76310.83
Moumouni Adamou DjermakoyeNigerien Alliance for Democracy and Progress147,6727.73
André SalifouUnion of Democratic and Progressive Patriots39,6412.08
Amadou Ali DjiboUnion of Independent Nigeriens32,9771.73
Total1,909,241100.001,772,654100.00
Valid votes1,909,24195.921,772,65497.64
Invalid/blank votes81,1294.0842,7572.36
Total votes1,990,370100.001,815,411100.00
Registered voters/turnout4,560,50843.644,608,09039.40
Source: African Elections Database

National Assembly
PartyVotes%Seats+/–
National Movement for the Development of Society611,09734.6538New
Democratic and Social Convention303,79017.2317New
Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism378,63421.4716New
Rally for Democracy and Progress193,08010.958New
Nigerien Alliance for Democracy and Progress116,6106.614–4
Union for Democracy and the Republic34,1281.940–
Union of Independent Nigeriens22,0811.250–
Union for Democracy and Social Progress20,3321.150–3
Nigerien Self-Management Party16,1910.920–
Nigerien Progressive Party – African Democratic Rally10,9120.620–
Union of Democratic and Progressive Patriots10,8630.620–4
Sawaba10,7090.610–
Union of Democratic Independents7,2390.410–
PSDN–MDP5,1260.290–
PPN-RDA-ORND4,5980.260–
PPN-RDA–UDPS4,5360.260–
Party for Socialism and Democracy in Niger3,0370.170–
Party for People's Dignity2,2970.130–3
Revolutionary Organisation for the New Democracy7780.040–
PPN-RDA–UDPS–ORND4370.020–
Party of the Masses for Labour340.000–2
Independents7,0440.400–3
Total1,763,553100.00830
Source: Global Elections Database

Aftermath

The new government was seated on 1 January 2000, and operated under the Constitution of 1999.

References
  1. "Report of the observation mission for the presidential and legislative elections of 17 October and 24 November 1999" Archived 18 October 2005 at the Wayback Machine, democratie.francophonie.org (in French).
  2. World: Africa: Niger delays election BBC News, 11 August 1999
  3. Niger: Elections held in 1999 International Parliamentary Union
  4. "Niger election commission", BBC World Service, 27 May 1999.
  5. "Niger delays election", BBC News, 11 August 1999.
  6. "NIGER: Eight register for November presidential poll", IRIN, August 30, 1999.
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