NOUAKCHOTT, June 29 - On Saturday, people in Mauritania hit the polls for a pretty big deal of an election. President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, who's 67 and used to be a big shot in the military, is looking to get picked for another four years. This election is kind of a biggie because the country's about to go all-in on natural gas, which could totally change the game for them.
Ghazouani's main thing is that he's telling everyone he'll make it easier for businesses to invest in the country, especially with all that gas and mineral wealth it's sitting on. But even with all that stuff, a lot of people in Mauritania are still pretty poor.
The Polling Situation and Who's Voting
The polls were open from early in the morning to pretty late at night, with the final tally supposed to drop on Sunday. There are about 2 million folks who signed up to vote, and everyone's talking about fixing corruption and giving young people some job prospects.
The Players and What They've Been Saying
So, Ghazouani's got six other people to compete with. One of them is Biram Dah Abeid, a big anti-slavery guy who got a lot of love last time around, coming in second with over 18% of the votes. Then there's this lawyer, Id Mohameden M'Bareck, and an economist, Mohamed Lemine El Mourtaji El Wafi, who's also in the race, along with Hamadi Sidi El Mokhtar from the Tewassoul party, which is all about Islam.
A voter in Nouakchott, the capital, named Mohamed Cheikh Hadrami, who's a geographer, talked about wanting someone to bring the country together. He said, "I voted for a candidate who can unite us," but didn't spill the beans on who he picked.
What's on the Line If He Wins Again
If Ghazouani gets another term, he's saying he'll put a lot of money into energy projects, like a power plant that runs on natural gas from the GTA offshore thing that's supposed to start working soon. He also wants to get more into renewables and dig up more gold, uranium, and iron.
Things have been pretty calm under his watch, which is surprising considering all the craziness in nearby places like Mali with their insurgents and military takeovers. He's been in charge since 2019, and as the current head of the African Union, he's been all about keeping the peace and dealing with those Islamist threats.
The Other Side and Human Rights Worries
But not everyone's singing his praises. Biram Dah Abeid is pointing out that Ghazouani's got some human rights issues, especially when it comes to how the Black African people in the country are treated. And then there's Hamadi Sidi El Mokhtar, who's got a different crowd with his conservative and religious views.
So now, everyone's waiting to see what happens. This election is going to decide a lot about how Mauritania's economy goes and what kind of social changes we might see in the future.
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