Madagascar: 28 candidates including incumbent Rajoelina submit bids for November elections

Madagascar’s President Andry Rajoelina submitted Wednesday September 6 his candidacy for November 09 presidential elections and will face 27 other candidates, including two former Presidents.

The country’s top court, Haute Cour Constitutionnelle (HCC), as of Wednesday September 6, the deadline for submitting bids, received 28 candidacies.

The court will vet the bids and release candidates for the first round of the elections on September 11.

The 28 candidacies also include those of former Presidents Marc Ravalomanana and Hery Martial Rajaonarimampianina. The two former Leaders and six other candidates last week signed a declaration for Rajoelina’s bid to be nullified, arguing that it is against the Constitution.

In June 2023, Rajoelina faced a storm of criticism after it emerged that he also owns French citizenship.

His critics and the opposition questioned his integrity in claiming Madagascar’s ownership of Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean, still controlled by former colonial power, France.

In July, he defended himself arguing that he acquired the French nationality in the interest of his children and doubled down that he will always defend the African country. “Dual nationality should not be a sin,” Rajoelina had said in an interview to State-run television.