Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has been eliminated in his bid to become the next Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC).
In the vote conducted on Saturday, February 15, Raila narrowly eliminated his bid to replace Moussa Faki in the first round. This is the second loss for Kenya at the regional body.
Before the elections, Raila’s campaign team had indicated he had support from at least 21 countries. However, he only garnered 17 votes in the hotly contested election, coming in second.
Mahmoud Ali Youssouf of Djibouti won the election, making him the seventh African Union Commission (AUC) Chairperson since its establishment in 2002. The other candidate, Richard Randriamandrato of Madagascar, finished last.
Backed by President Willaim Ruto, Raila campaigned through the continent and accompanied the head of state on various foreign trips where other African leaders were invited to drum up support. Before the elections, Raila’s campaign team had indicated he had support from at least 21 countries.
Raila will replace Moussa Faki, who served for two terms. Raila will serve for a term of four years, with the possibility of re-election for one additional term for a maximum of two terms or eight years in total.
In 2017, Kenya’s Amina Mohamed garnered 16 votes in the first round against Moussa Faki’s 14. The remaining votes were split among the other candidates.
Faki was elected in the seventh round with 38 votes, surpassing the required threshold.
Kenya struggled to secure support from its EAC neighbours among them Tanzania, Uganda, and Burundi.
Candidates for deputy AUC chairperson include Salah Francis (Algeria), Selma Malika (Algeria), Mohamed Fathi (Egypt), Hana Morsy (Egypt), Najat Elhajjaji (Libya), and Latifa Akharbach (Morocco).