2023 Mauritanian local elections

Local elections will be held in Mauritania on 13 May 2023, alongside parliamentary and regional elections.[2][3]

For the parliamentary and regional elections held concurrently, see 2023 Mauritanian parliamentary election and 2023 Mauritanian regional elections.
2023 Mauritanian local elections
13 May 2023[lower-alpha 1]
235 local councils[lower-alpha 2]

The elections will be the first local elections held after the first peaceful transition of power in the country as a result of the 2019 presidential elections, in which Mohamed Ould Ghazouani was elected president after incumbent Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz was not able to run due to the two-term constitutional limit.

Background

On 26 September 2022 an agreement between the Ministry of the Interior and Decentralisation and all political parties registered in Mauritania was reached in order to renew the Independent National Electoral Commission and hold the elections in the first semester of 2023, with parties justifying it due to climatic and logistical conditions.[4][5]

On 8 May 2023 the Administrative Chamber of the Supreme Court suspended the local elections in the R'Kiz Department of the Trarza Region due to unclear municipal border delimitations, with the election being "suspended in these municipalities until an organizational text is issued that enables the residents of these villages to exercise their constitutionally guaranteed electoral right by demarcating them within the borders of one of the county’s municipalities".[1]

Election system

On 26 September 2022 all Mauritanian political parties reached an agreement sponsored by the Ministry of Interior and Decentralisation to reform the election system ahead of the upcoming elections after weeks of meetings between all parties.[5]

In this election, local councils will be elected in a single round using proportional representation through the largest remainder method, with no threshold being applied. The head of the list that gets the most votes will automatically become mayor.[5][6]

Notes
  1. Delayed in R'Kiz Department until municipal boundaries are delimited.[1]
  2. (excluding 55 seats in 3 local councils in R'Kiz)

References
  1. "حكم قضائي يوقف الانتخابات في بلديات مقاطعة الركيز" [A court ruling stops the elections in the municipalities of the R'Kiz Department]. AlAkhbar.info (in Arabic). 8 May 2023. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  2. "تحديد مايو 2023 موعدا للانتخابات البرلمانية والبلدية والجهوية بموريتانيا" [May 2023 set as the date for the parliamentary, municipal and regional elections in Mauritania]. AlAkhbar.info (in Arabic). 13 December 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2022.
  3. "اتفاق بين الحكومة الموريتانية والأحزاب بشأن آليات ومواعيد الانتخابات التشريعية والمحلية" [Agreement between the Mauritanian government and parties regarding the mechanisms and dates of legislative and local elections]. Al Jazeera (in Arabic). 28 September 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  4. "لظروف مناخية ولوجستية.. اتفاق في موريتانيا على تقديم مواعيد الانتخابات" [Due to climatic and logistical conditions, an agreement was reached in Mauritania to advance the election dates]. Al Jazeera (in Arabic). 18 September 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  5. "نص الاتفاق النهائي بين وزارة الداخلية والأحزاب السياسية" [The text of the final agreement between the Ministry of the Interior and political parties]. AlAkhbar.info (in Arabic). 27 September 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  6. Saleh, Tidjani (11 October 2022). "Mauritania: New Election, New System". Africa Elects. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
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