Comoros opposition candidates file supreme court petition to nullify election

Abdallah Mohamad Daoudou, who was a flag-bearer for the opposition Orange party, told Reuters the petition asks the Supreme Court to nullify the Jan. 14 election result. The opposition claims the poll was tainted by fraud, including alleged instances of ballot stuffing and of voting ending before the official closing time.

Three opposition candidates in Comoros' presidential election filed a petition at the Supreme Court on Saturday challenging the re-election of incumbent leader Azali Assoumani in a vote that has sparked deadly protests. Abdallah Mohamad Daoudou, who was a flag-bearer for the opposition Orange party, told Reuters the petition asks the Supreme Court to nullify the Jan. 14 election result.

The opposition claims the poll was tainted by fraud, including alleged instances of ballot stuffing and of voting ending before the official closing time. The government has denied those accusations.

"People have expressed their dissatisfaction with the results, which do not reflect reality," Salim Issa, the runner-up and head of the opposition Juwa party, told Reuters. "We therefore went to court... We are waiting for a transparent judgement."

Assoumani, who stood against five opponents, was declared the winner with 62.97% of the vote. The opposition rejected the results and staged protests that have left at least one dead and 25 people injured. The government has challenged the opposition to provide proof of the electoral fraud. On Wednesday the army fired teargas to disperse protesters in Moroni, capital of Comoros, an Indian Ocean archipelago of islands with a population of about 800,000.

Assoumani first came to power through a coup in 1999. He stepped down in 2002 and then won elections 14 years later. Constitutional reforms in 2018 removed a requirement that the presidency rotate among Comoros' three main islands every five years, allowing Assoumani to seek re-election in 2019.