2009 Equatorial Guinean presidential election

none Equatorial Guinea presidential 2002 Equatorial Guinean presidential election 2002 2016 Equatorial Guinean presidential election 2016 29 November 2009 292,585 93.36% Teodoro Obiang (2011-06-06).jpg Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea 260,462 95.76% 3x4.svg Plácido Micó Abogo Convergence for Social Democracy (Equatorial Guinea) 9,700 3.57% President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo PDGE Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo PDGE Presidential elections were held in Equatorial Guinea on November 29, 2009. Teodoro Obiang Nguema, who has been President since 1979, ran for another term and won re-election with 95.8% of the vote, according to official results. Opposition leader Plácido Micó Abogo placed second with 3.6%."Eq.Guinea president re-elected with 95.4 percent: final results", AFP, 3 December 2009. However, international observers and the main opposition candidate questioned the legitimacy of this election, noting the poor management which created an unfriendly field for other candidates to take part, media manipulation and the unbalanced results. Background According to a presidential decree issued on February 29, 2008, the election was planned for 2010.10.1111/j.1467-825X.2008.01618.x EQUATORIAL GUINEA: Poll Timetable Africa Research Bulletin: Political, Social and Cultural Series Blackwell 45 17458A 3 2008 However, it was announced on October 16, 2009, that the election would be held on November 29, 2009. Micó Abogo criticized the election date, arguing that the government intended to deprive the opposition of adequate time to prepare for the election by announcing the date only 45 days in advance. He said that his party, the Convergence for Social Democracy (CPDS), would participate in the election, along with other opposition parties, although he alleged that the ruling Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea (PDGE) was planning fraud.https://archive.today/20130103002126/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j3K1jM1K_cKSXkKl-3jT2Prc6N1w Equatorial Guinea to hold presidential vote AFP, October 16, 2009 Campaign Campaigning began on November 5. The Equatoguinean Ambassador to the United States, Purificacion Angue Ondo, stressed that the government was "committed to holding fair and democratic elections. As part of our reform efforts we aim to ensure all voices are heard. We view open access of the media to political candidates as crucial in this process. We are committed to ensuring all of our candidates are able to exercise their right to speak to the press." The government pointed to an interview given by Micó Abogo on the Spanish International Channel, which was broadcast on television in Equatorial Guinea, as a sign of its commitment to openness."Presidential Campaigning Officially Begins in Equatorial Guinea" https://web.archive.org/web/20160303170403/http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/presidential-campaigning-officially-begins-in-equatorial-guinea,1032750.shtml 2016-03-03 , Equatoguinean government press release, November 6, 2009. Parties running candidates in the election were to receive public funds for campaigning purposes. There were about 291,000 people registered to vote.https://archive.today/20130125035703/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5h4u8hmmjbBK8ZY7OoqfpRHWn9duQ "Obiang promete ser reelegido con más del 97% de los votos", AFP, 28 November 2009 es. There is substantial variation in estimates of the total population, with low estimates of around 600,000 people and high estimates of more than one million."EQUATORIAL GUINEA: Poverty rife in Africa’s “Kuwait”", IRIN, 6 October 2008. Five candidates stood in the election, although two of them were characterized by the international press as mere proxies for President Obiang. Obiang's campaign presented him as the candidate representing continuity and successful management of Equatorial Guinea's lucrative oil industry, promising redistribution of oil wealth and economic development. Declaring himself to be "the candidate of the people", Obiang said that no one could contradict the will of the people and expressed confidence that he would win more than 97% of the vote (he officially won the previous presidential election, held in 2002, with 97.1%). Meanwhile, Mico Abogo denounced the government as oppressive and said that it won elections only through fraud. He also said that oil wealth had only served to enrich the small elite surrounding Obiang and that it helped to reinforce the regime. According to a diplomat posted in Malabo, who pointed to Micó Abogo's severe criticisms of the government, the campaign had been marked by an increased "freedom of tone" for the opposition. Noting that the government wanted the election to appear credible, he believed that the increased degree of freedom was the result of negotiations with the government. The active participation of the opposition in the campaign was nevertheless considered limited by Almani Cyllah of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems: "These elections would have been a turning point if the opposition had actually participated. We would have felt that yes, things are moving in the right direction. But the opposition felt that the elections were not going to be free and fair."Incumbent Obiang Declares Victory in Equatorial Guinea Vote 1 December 2009 https://www.voanews.com/a/incumbent-obiang-declares-victory-in-equatorial-guinea-vote-78237612/368496.html December 4, 2009 Voice of America 5 December 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20091205192744/http://www1.voanews.com/english/news/africa/west/Incumbent-Obiang-Declares-Victory-in-Equatorial-Guinea-Vote-78237612.html live Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea candidate Carmelo Mba Bacale announced on 28 November that he had decided to boycott the election. He alleged that the PDGE was planning fraud, saying that PDGE members were heading polling stations as well as the electoral commission.https://archive.today/20130125045720/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gqHDqKb5sydyDwy1v1v_pDrLA_aQ "Guinée équatoriale: un candidat aux présidentielles va "boycotter" le scrutin", AFP, 28 November 2009 fr. Conduct On election day, 29 November, voter turnout was reportedly low. Mico Abogo denounced the conduct of the election, saying that fraud and manipulation were rife, and he declared that he would not accept the official results."Opposition 'will not accept' Equatorial Guinea election", BBC News, 29 November 2009. Observers noted irregularities in the election."Eq. Guinea: Leader wins 96.7 percent of vote"June 2024 medicmedic, AFP, November 30, 2009. Abogo also claimed that "government agents voted in place of the public and some polling stations closed early." https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8384859.stm Opposition 'will not accept' Equatorial Guinea election December 6, 2009 29 November 2009 BBC Abogo's allegation of fraud came amidst international observations that the media had been subjected to manipulations throughout the election, including the refusal of visas for the press and enhanced public relations activity by a private firm supporting President Obiang. Soon after the election, Human Rights Watch said "In recent weeks it [the government] has stifled and harassed the country's beleaguered political opposition ... [and] imposed serious constraints on international observers."http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2009/12/2009124111748394908.html Equatorial Guinea 'elects Obiang' Al Jazeera December 4, 2009 With similar observations and accounts in mind, IFES commentator Almani Cyllah said that "it is a little difficult to see how we can say that those elections are free and fair." Results Nearly complete provisional results were released by 1 December, showing Obiang winning 95.19% of the vote; Micó Abogo was credited with 4.05%, while Popular Union candidate Archivaldo Montero was credited with 0.39%, Party of the Social Democratic Coalition candidate Bonaventura Monsuy Asumu was credited with 0.19%, and Mba Bacale (who had announced a boycott the day before the election) was credited with 0.17%. 292,585 people were said to have voted, a figure that slightly exceeded the official number of registered voters (about 291,000).https://archive.today/20130124184803/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5h1v_R3s3LNOv4v6yqWC-rizXCjdw "Guinée équatoriale: Obiang réélu avec 95,1% des voix", AFP, 1 December 2009 fr. According to official results, Obiang's lead increased slightly when the final results were released on 3 December. According to those results, Obiang received 95.8% of the vote, Micó Abogo received 3.6%, Montero received 0.34%, and Monsuy Asumu received 0.17%. Speaking to a gathering of thousands of supporters in Malabo on 3 December, Obiang declared that the people had chosen "progress and peace" by re-electing him. He vowed "to focus on health and education" as well as more training for women and the youth, while stressing the importance of spending the country's oil wealth responsibly.https://archive.today/20130125020502/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gmBn96S2OIyvVKqYeLt23qowz0Qw "Eq.Guinea re-elected leader vows 'progress and peace'", AFP, 4 December 2009. The official results were inconsistent, with the total of votes received by candidates (271,992) being 28 higher than the published total valid votes (271,964).Elections in Equatorial Guinea https://web.archive.org/web/20220602231136/https://africanelections.tripod.com/gq.html#2009_Presidential_Election 2022-06-02 African Elections Database Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea 260462 Plácido Micó Abogo Convergence for Social Democracy 9700 Archivaldo Montero Biribé Popular Union of Equatorial Guinea 931 Buenaventura Moswi M'Asumu Nsegue Party of the Social Democratic Coalition 462 Carmelo Mba Bacale Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea 437 1163 292585 African Elections Database Aftermath Obiang was sworn in for his new seven-year term in a ceremony at the Palace of Congress in Bata on 8 December 2009; various other African heads of state were in attendance. On the occasion, Obiang spoke of a "bright and promising future". He also said that he would promote cooperation between parties so that there could be a political consensus for the good of the nation."Teodoro Obiang Nguema investi président de la Guinée équatoriale", AFP, 8 December 2009 fr. References Obiang reelected as president of Equatorial Guinea after elections Category:Presidential elections in Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Presidential Election