Djibouti Wins AUC Elections

Djibouti candidate Mahmoud Ali Youssouf in the AUC Elections has won the chairmanship position.

This is after he managed to secure two-thirds of the votes cast by the member states in the 7th round.

Djibouti’s Mahmoud Youssouf entered the round as the lone candidate and secured the 33 votes needed to be the next Chairperson of the African Union Commission.

Earlier, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga won the first round of voting in the African Union Commission (AUC) Chairperson election.

Djibouti candidate Mahmoud Ali Youssouf Wins AUC Seat

The Kenyan candidate secured 20 votes from the African Union member states, while his closest competitor, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf of Djibouti, received 18 votes. Madagascar’s Richard Randriamandrato garnered 10 votes, with one abstention recorded.

In the second round of voting, Odinga increased his tally to 22 votes, while Youssouf secured 19 votes, and Randriamandrato received 7 votes, with one abstention remaining.

The third round saw a dramatic shift as Youssouf overtook Odinga with 23 votes, while Odinga followed closely with 20 votes. Madagascar’s candidate, Randriamandrato, trailed with just 5 votes.

Madagascar Candidate’s Elimination

Following the third round, the Madagascar candidate was eliminated from the race.

In the fourth round, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf extended his lead with 25 votes, while Raila Odinga secured 21 votes. Additionally, one spoilt vote and two abstentions were recorded.

The fifth-round saw Youssouf further strengthen his lead with 26 votes, with Odinga maintaining 21 votes. Two countries abstained from voting.

Also Read: Blow for Raila as 16 Countries Declare Support for Another AUC Candidate

With three wins out of five rounds, the Djiboutian Foreign Affairs Minister took an early lead in the race for the AUC Chairperson position.

In the sixth Round Mahmoud Ali Youssouf maintained 26 votes while Odinga garnered 22votes. This outcome meant that Odinga had been eliminated therefore Djibouti candidate went to the next round alone.

Kenya Loses AUC Seat for the Second Time in 8 Years

Kenya has now lost the AUC elections twice in eight years. In 2017, Moussa Faki of Chad defeated Kenya’s candidate, Amina Mohamed, after multiple voting rounds. This is despite extensive campaigns by Kenya at the time. Neighboring countries including Uganda, Djibouti, and Burundi, did not support Kenya’s bid at the time.

Also Read: Mahamoud Ali Youssouf: Profile of Djibouti Candidate who Beat Raila in AUC Race

Mohamed advanced past the first three rounds, reaching the final contest against Faki but the former Sports CS lost by three votes (28-25) in the decisive round.

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