2020 Seychellois general election explained

Country:Seychelles
Election Date:22–24 October 2020
Module:
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Type:presidential
Election Name:Presidential election
Previous Election:2015 Seychellois presidential election
Previous Year:2015
Next Election:2025 Seychellois general election
Next Year:2025
Image1:Wavel Ramkalawan - president of Seychelles (cropped).jpg
Nominee1:Wavel Ramkalawan
Running Mate1:Ahmed Afif
Party1:SNP
Alliance1:LDS
Alliance2:None
Alliance2 Name:no
Popular Vote1:35,562
Percentage1:54.91%
Nominee2:Danny Faure
Party2:United Seychelles
Popular Vote2:28,178
Percentage2:43.51%
President
Before Election:Danny Faure
Before Party:United Seychelles
After Election:Wavel Ramkalawan
After Party:LDS
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Election Name:Parliamentary election
Previous Election:2016
Next Election:2025
Seats For Election:All 35 seats in the National Assembly
Majority Seats:18
Party1:LDS
Last Election1:19
Percentage1:54.84
Seats1:25
Leader2:Vincent Meriton
Party2:United Seychelles
Last Election2:14
Percentage2:42.35
Seats2:10
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Election Name:Maps

General elections were held in Seychelles on 22–24 October 2020 to elect the President and members of the National Assembly.[1] The National Assembly elections had been due in 2021,[2] but in July 2020 were brought forward by President Danny Faure in order to hold them together with the presidential elections, a proposal supported by opposition parties.[3] [4]

The presidential elections were won by Wavel Ramkalawan of the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS), with the LDS also increasing its majority in the National Assembly, winning 25 of the 35 seats.

In this election, the first Hindu member of the Seychelles National Assembly, Satya Naidu, was elected.[5]

Electoral system

The President of Seychelles is elected using the two-round system;[6] if no candidate receives a majority of the vote in the first round, a second round is held between the top two candidates.

Members of the National Assembly are elected by two methods; 26 (with a new constituency established in 2020) are elected from single-member constituencies using first-past-the-post voting, and up to a further ten are elected based on the percentage of votes received by each party; for each 10% of the total national vote received, a party gets one additional seat.[7] [8]

Presidential campaign

In August 2019 the United Seychelles Party nominated its leader and incumbent president Danny Faure as its candidate during its thirty-third annual congress.[9] Wavel Ramkalawan from the liberal Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS) and Alain St. Ange from the progressive One Seychelles Party (founded on 26 April 2019 and registered on 12 June 2019) are challenging the incumbent. While former speaker of national assembly Patrick Pillay sought nomination, the election commission rejected his candidacy on the ground that he failed to collect the required 500 signatures from registered voters.[10]

While the country recorded only 149 (mostly imported) COVID-19 cases, public health directives still impacted the campaign. For instance, public election rallies were banned. Since there are no active polling institutes, rally attendance had been used to measure support in previous elections. However, the candidates were active in social media, and also participated in the country's first televised presidential debate. The economy was a major campaign issue due to the high cost of living and recent reduction in tourism.[11] While Transparency International ranks Seychelles as one of the 30 least corrupt countries in the world, the incumbent government was considered too accommodating to offshore business interests.[12]

Results

On 25 October, Wavel Ramkalawan was declared the winner of the presidential election with 54.91% of the vote, marking the first peaceful transfer of presidential power between different political parties since independence in 1976. He had run unsuccessfully in the presidential elections from 1998 onward. Danny Faure attended Ramkalawan's victory speech; in his speech, Ramkalawan emphasized reconciliation: "In this election, there were no losers, there were no winners — our country was given the opportunity as the ultimate winner."[13]

National Assembly

By constituency

ConstituencyLDSUSOSOthersValidTotalTurnoutRegistered
Votes%Votes%Votes%Votes%
1Anse Aux Pins149652.8125444.2843.028342916883304
2Anse Boileau156453.1134045.5411.429453012893398
3Anse Etoile216162.0127336.5501.434843585884064
4Anse Royale134346.4148451.3662.328932893863375
5Au Cap184561.7108136.2411.4230.829903071883509
6Baie Lazare132455.0108345.024072481902756
7Baie Ste Anne128943.5138346.72929.929643051893444
8Beau Vallon172760.091331.72398.328792963873421
9Bel Air102551.787043.9874.419822028882315
10Belombre172663.2100536.827312822873261
11Cascade131754.2108444.6271.124282495902785
12English River142957.598039.5502.0251.024842575892908
13Glacis171362.298535.8552.027532826863270
14Grand Anse (Mahe)142867.668532.421132183882478
15Grand Anse (Praslin)129651.8110344.01054.225042521902810
16Ile Perseverance143853.2109840.61676.227032826923083
17Inner Islands66537.1110561.7221.217921838902046
18Les Mamelles117758.182740.8221.120262084902326
19Mont Buxton144958.599340.1351.424772552892882
20Mont Fleuri131758.991941.10.022362305872643
21Plaisance145253.2122144.8552.027282845873257
22Pointe Larue96646.2109652.4281.320902142892400
23Port Glaud87048.492951.617991856922008
24Roche Caiman77644.478144.719211.017491803911990
25Saint Louis128159.978136.5783.621402187852572
26Takamaka112854.791244.2231.120632118912329
align=left colspan=2Total3520254.82718542.314202.23870.664194659788874634
align=left colspan=14Source: ECS

Reactions

The United States Department of State issued a statement congratulating "the Government of the Republic of Seychelles and the Seychellois people on a successful election." The Department further "congratulate[d] Reverend Wavel Ramkalawan on his election and look[s] forward to expanding cooperation on a wide range of mutual interests."[14]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Presidential, legislative election dates in Seychelles confirmed: Oct 22-24. Seychelles News Agency. 11 August 2020. 16 September 2020.
  2. Web site: Seychelles' president approves Election Act amendment, creating permanent chief electoral officer position. Seychelles News Agency. 27 December 2018. 16 September 2020.
  3. Web site: Seychelles' President decides to hold presidential, legislative elections together. Seychelles News Agency. 30 July 2020. 16 September 2020.
  4. Web site: Opposition parties in Seychelles say they are ready to contest early legislative election. Seychelles News Agency. 31 July 2020. 16 September 2020.
  5. News: Interview: 'Not in Favour of Any Foreign Military Base': Seychelles' First Hindu MP Sathya Naidu. The Wire. Devirupa Mitra. 24 February 2021.
  6. http://www.electionguide.org/elections/id/2883/ Republic of Seychelles: Election for President
  7. http://www.ipu.org/parline-e/reports/2279_B.htm Electoral system
  8. http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/seychelles/constitution-politics Seychelles : Constitution and politics
  9. https://sbc.sc/news/united-seychelles-endorses-president-faure-as-partys-candidate-for-2020-election/ United Seychelles endorses President Faure as party's candidate for 2020 election
  10. Web site: 2020-09-17. Three Candidates Nominated For Seychelles October 2020 Election. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20200920000328/https://allafrica.com/view/group/main/main/id/00074881.html . 20 September 2020 . 2020-10-13. allAfrica. en.
  11. Web site: 2020-10-24. Seychelles votes for new president, parliament. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201029101507/https://www.africanews.com/2020/10/24/seychelles-votes-for-new-president-parliament/ . 29 October 2020 . 2020-10-27. Africanews. en.
  12. Web site: 2020-10-22. Seychelles presidential vote begins. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201026225531/https://www.africanews.com/2020/10/22/seychelles-presidential-vote-begins/ . 26 October 2020 . 2020-10-27. Africanews. en.
  13. News: 2020-10-25. Seychelles election: Wavel Ramkalawan in landmark win. en-GB. BBC News. 2020-10-27.
  14. News: Congratulations on Seychelles' Elections . 28 October 2020 . U.S. Department of State . 25 October 2020.