Djibouti’s Mahamoud Ali Youssouf wins African Union Commission (AUC) chairperson race in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The election process saw multiple rounds of voting, with Raila leading at first but eventually losing to Djibouti’s candidate, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf.
At the start, Raila performed strongly. In the first round, he secured 20 votes, while Mahamoud received 18. Madagascar’s Richard Randriamandrato followed with 10 votes, and one country abstained.
Momentum continued for Raila in the second round, where he increased his lead to 22 votes. Mahamoud closely trailed with 19, while Randriamandrato got 7. Once again, one country abstained from voting.
However, things took a turn in the third round. Mahamoud gained ground, winning 23 votes, while Raila’s support dropped to 20.
Randriamandrato, with just 5 votes, was eliminated from the race. The competition now became a direct battle between Raila and Mahamoud.
Mahamoud extended his lead in the fourth round, securing 25 votes. Raila managed 21, while one vote was spoiled, and another nation abstained.
The trend continued in the fifth round, where Mahamoud increased his tally to 26 votes against Raila’s 21. One country again chose not to vote.
The winning round
By the sixth round, Mahamoud maintained his lead with 26 votes, while Raila slightly improved with 22. However, this was not enough, and Raila was eliminated from the contest.
In the final and seventh round, Mahamoud stood as the only candidate. He needed to secure two-thirds of the votes to win. With 33 votes in his favor, he officially clinched the AUC Chair position.
Mahamoud Ali Youssouf will now replace outgoing chairperson Moussa Faki of Chad, who has served for eight years.
