Presidential elections were held in the Comoros on 21 February 2016, with a second round to be held on 10 April 2016, alongside elections for the Governors of the three islands. A re-run of the second round was held in thirteen constituencies on

Anjouan Anjouan (; also known as Ndzuwani or Nzwani, and historically as Johanna or Hinzuan) is an autonomous high island in the Indian Ocean that forms part of the Union of the Comoros. Its chief town is Mutsamudu and, , its population is around 277,500. ...

on 11 May.

Azali Assoumani Azali Assoumani ( ar, غزالي عثماني; born 1 January 1959) is a Comorian politician and military officer who has served as President of the Comoros since April 2019. He was also president from 2002 to 2006 and 2016 to February 2019. He ...

of the

Convention for the Renewal of the Comoros The Convention for the Renewal of the Comoros (, CRC) is a political party in the Comoros. History The CRC was established in September 2002 by members of the Movement for Socialism and Democracy, a group expelled from the Democratic Front. In ...

was elected President with 41% of the vote.

Electoral system

The

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...

of the Comoros rotates between the country's three main islands;

, Grande Comore and

Mohéli Mohéli , also known as Mwali, is an autonomous island that forms part of the Union of the Comoros. It is the smallest of the three major islands in the country. It is located in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Africa and it is the smallest of ...

. The

2006 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2006. * Elections in 2006 * Electoral calendar 2006 * 2006 Acehnese regional election * 2006 American Samoan legislative election * 2006 Bahraini parliamentary election * 2006 Costa Rican president ...

were limited to candidates from Anjouan and the 2010 elections to Mohélian candidates. As a result, the 2016 elections will see presidential candidacy limited to Grande Comore residents. A primary election took place on Grande Comore on 21 February, with the three top candidates progressing to the nationwide second round on 10 April, where a plurality determined the winner.

Campaign

On 30 October 2013 former President

Ahmed Sambi Sayyid Ahmed Abdallah Mohamed Sambi ( ar, أحمد عبدالله محمد سامبي, born 5 June 1958) is a Comorian Islamic leader and politician, and former President of Comoros. He is popularly known as 'Ayatollah'. After easily winning the ...

launched the

Juwa Party The Juwa Party (french: Parti Juwa, PJ, "Sun Party") is a political party in the Comoros. The party was established by former president Ahmed Abdallah Mohamed Sambi in 2013 and became the main opposition party in 2015. After boycotting the 202 ...

, announcing that he would run in the elections.

Results

Reactions

Domestic

* Mohamed Ali Soilihi, presidential candidate from the

Union for the Development of the Comoros The Union for the Development of the Comoros (french: Union pour le Développement des Comores, UPDC; ) is a political alliance in the Comoros. The party's president is Mohamed Halifa. History The UPDC was established in February 2013 as an all ...

and former vice president of Comoros, rejected the results. Ali Soilihi alleged that the released results by the Independent National Electoral Commission is only partial and that the margin is too small for them to declare the results.

International

* African Union: The African Union observers headed by

Moncef Marzouki Mohamed Moncef Marzouki ( ar, محمد المنصف المرزوقي; ''Muhammad al-Munṣif al-Marzūqī'', born 7 July 1945) is a Tunisian politician who served as the fifth president of Tunisia from 2011 to 2014. Through his career he has been ...

declared the elections to be free and transparent and was conducted in a peaceful manner. * : The Arab league declared the first round of elections free and fair. * : Prior to the election the European Union help fund and train Independent National Electoral Commission to help them conduct free and fair elections. Though the EU did not send an observer mission to the isles, the International Francophonie Organization based in France sent an observer team. The organization commended both the people and the authorities that held the elections in a peaceful and orderly process. * : The UN Secretary general Ban Ki-moon commended the people for conducting the elections peacefully and requested that all members of the election resolve their issues in a peaceful and legal manner.

Aftermath

After the provisional results were released,

Mohamed Ali Soilihi Mohamed Ali Soilihi (born ca. 1950 in Mbeni, Grande Comore) is a Comorian politician from Grande Comore who served as Vice-President of Union of the Comoros for Ministry of Finance, Budget, Foreign Trade and Economy of Comoros. He served in the ...

refused to accept his defeat by

and claimed that not all the results from

had been properly released and the margin was too narrow for CENI to declare a winner. The Constitutional Court ordered a partial re-run to be held in 13 constituencies by 15 May.

References

{{Comorian elections Comoros Presidential elections in the Comoros

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...