Nigerian Court Rules Candidate Was Illegally Excluded

President's mind full of "cobwebs of juju," replies former #2

(NEWSER) - The president of Nigeria and his former vice president are locked in a jihad of words, after the latter allegedly consulted Islamic holy men about when the former would die, and assured other ministers the date was not far off. President Olesugun Obasanjo decried the treasonous consultation, but added that he is "not afraid of such stupidity." More»

Incumbent's victory lays bare north-south tensions

(NEWSER) - Incumbent Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has won a landslide victory in his party's primary, but his defeated opponent warns that instability looms in Africa's most populous country. Jonathan—who came to power when the elected president died last year —is a Christian from Nigeria's south. His candidacy violates an internal power-sharing agreement to rotate the presidency between southerners and Muslims from the north, Bloomberg notes. More»

(NEWSER) - Hillary Clinton told an audience of Nigerians yesterday that while their country's democracy is deeply flawed, the Florida presidential race recount shows America's isn't perfect either, the Guardian reports. "Our democracy is still evolving," Clinton said. "We had some problems in some of our presidential elections. In 2000 our presidential election came down to one state where the brother of one of the men running for president was governor of the state. So we have our problems, too." More»

Stability gives candidates chance to compete more in Western democratic style

(NEWSER) - If Iraq’s tumultuous 2005 elections were a trial run at democracy, the current provincial race has main-event flavor, the Washington Post reports. Greater stability has allowed town-hall gatherings, where voters grill some 14,000 candidates running for 440 seats on everything from housing to militarization. And campaign posters, T-shirts and jingles are ubiquitous ahead of the Jan. 31 vote. More»

Candidates charge fraud; observers say polling should be repeated

(NEWSER) - Opposition candidates in Nigeria’s presidential elections have rejected the results of Saturday’s voting, accusing the governing party of fraud. Foreign observers concur that the polling was faulty, with violence, intimidation, missing ballot boxes, and even abduction and murder of electoral officials and the police officers escorting them the BBC reports. More»