2000 Mauritian general election
The 2000 Mauritian general elections took place on 11 September 2000 for the National Assembly of Mauritius with the votes counted on 12 September 2000.
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All 70 seats in the National Assembly 35 seats needed for a majority | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| This article is part of a series on the politics and government of Mauritius |
| Constitution |
The opposition Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) party decisively won the elections in coalition with the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM), defeating the governing Mauritian Labour Party (MLP) led coalition. They formed together the MSM/MMM As a result, in a pre-election deal Anerood Jugnauth of the Militant Socialist Movement became Prime Minister of Mauritius before handing over to Paul Bérenger of the Mauritian Militant Movement in 2003; Bérenger would become the first non-Hindu Prime Minister of Mauritius.[1]
Background
The Mauritian Labour Party led by Navin Ramgoolam had governed Mauritius since winning the 1995 election. A new election had to be held by December 2000 and Ramgoolam dissolved parliament to call the election on 11 August 2000. He expected to be able to win the election in a three-way contest with the Mauritian Militant Movement and Militant Socialist Movement parties splitting the opposition vote between them.[2] However ten days after the election was called the two main opposition parties agreed a deal.[1][2]
The MSM led by Anerood Jugnauth and MMM led by Paul Bérenger agreed that if they won the election Jugnauth would become Prime Minister. They agreed that after three years he would step down as Prime Minister to become the President of Mauritius with enhanced powers, and that Bérenger would become Prime Minister, the first non-Hindu to do so.[2]
Election rules
The election was conducted under the first past the post system with three Members of parliament being elected from each of 20 mainland constituencies. A further two MPs were elected from the island of Rodrigues. Each voter was required to vote for three candidates. Once these 62 MPs were decided the Supervisory Electoral Commission chose the eight 'best losers' to prevent any ethnic community or political party from being underrepresented. The Commission chose four MPs to balance the ethnic groups (Hindus, Muslims, Chinese and general population) and another four to balance the political parties. The 'best losers' could only come from candidates who came fourth in the 20 mainland constituencies.[3][4]
Campaign
There were 43 parties putting forth 535 candidates but the main contest was between the two main coalitions that campaigned on similar platforms with the economy being the dominate election issue.[5] The governing Mauritian Labour Party promised to raise civil servants' wages and reduce the prices of drinks while the main opposition attacked corruption. Both the government and opposition parties pledged to create 70,000 jobs.[6]
The campaign was peaceful and election day was quiet with the sale or serving of alcohol banned for two days during the election to prevent trouble.[7] Observers from the Southern African Development Community praised the election for its efficient and fair conduct and the high turnout.[8] The opposition Mauritian Militant Movement and Militant Socialist Movement parties won a decisive victory almost wiping out the governing party and the Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam admitted defeat the day after the election.[9] Gender activists were disappointed with the results which saw only four seats won by women, a decline on the previous election in 1995.[10]
Election results
| Parties and alliances | Votes | % | Seats | Additional seats | total seats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alliance MSM-MMM
|
51.7 | 54 | 4 | 58 | |
Alliance MLP-PMXD
|
36.6 | 6 | 2 | 8 | |
| Rodrigues People's Organisation (Organisation du Peuple Rodriguais) | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||
| Rodrigues Movement (Mouvement Rodriguais) | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| Total (Turnout 80.9%) | 630,726 | 100.0 | 62 | 8 | 70 |
| Source: Elections in Mauritius | |||||
Constituency winners
| Constituency | Elected MPs | Party Alliance | Religion |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BARBIER, Jean Claude NAVARRE-MARIE, Marie Arianne ARMANCE, Jean- Claude Louis Desiré | MSM/MMM | Christians |
| 2 | LEUNG SHING, Emmanuel Jean BEEBEEJAUN, Ahmed Rashid MAUDARBOCUS, Sahid | MSM/MMM Labour Party-PMXD MSM/MMM | Chinese Muslim Muslim |
| 3 | LAUTHAN, Samioullah CHADY, Mohummud Siddick NANHUCK, Mohammad | MSM/MMM Labor Party-PMXD MSM/MMM | Muslim |
| 4 | CHUMROO, Meckduth GRIVON, Gérard Clifford LESJONGARD, Georges Pierre | MSM/MMM | Hindu Christian |
| 5 | Navin Ramgoolam JHURRY, Jyaneshwur HURNAM, Devendranath | Labor Party-PMXD MSM/MMM MSM/MSM | Hindu |
| 6 | JEEHA, Deelchand, GUNGAH, Ashit Kumar DULLOO, Madan Murlidhar | MSM/MMM MSM/MMM Labor-PMXD | Hindu |
| 7 | Sir Anerood Jugnauth HOOKOOM, Balkissoon MEENOWA, Jai Prakash | MSM/MMM Labor Party-PMXD MSM/MMM | Hindu |
| 8 | RAMLOLL, Parmessur Ashok Jugnauth NAGALINGUM, Darmarajen | MSM/MMM | Hindu |
| 9 | BACHOO, Anil Kumar Sangeet Fowdar KOONJOO, Premdut | MSM/MMM | Hindu |
| 10 | CHOONEE, Mookhesswur GUNNESS, Govindranath DAUREEAWOO, Rashad | MSM/MMM | Hindu Hindu Muslim |
| 11 | Pravind Jugnauth BOOLELL, Arvin BHOWON, Rajayswur | MSM/MMM Labor Party-PMXD MSM/MMM | Hindu |
| 12 | GAYAN, Anil Kumarsingh ROOPUN, Dharmaveersing COLLENDAVELLOO, Ivan Leslie | MSM/MMM | Hindu Hindu Christian |
| 13 | AUMEER, Hurreeprem ISSIMDAR, Abdool Nasser BALOOMOODY, Vedasingam Vasudevachariar | MSM/MMM | Hindu Muslims Hindu |
| 14 | Alan Ganoo ARUNASALON, José ROOPUN, Prithvirajsing, | MSM/MMM | Hindu Christian Hindu |
| 15 | DOOKUN LUCHOOMUN, Leela Devi OBEEGADOO, Louis Steven SOODHUN, Showkutally | MSM/MMM | Hindu Christian Muslim |
| 16 | BODHA, Nandcoomar SAKARAM, Sewram MICHEL, Louis Sylvio | MSM/MMM | Hindu Hindu Christian |
| 17 | GUIMBEAU, Eric Joseph Raoul PAYA, Marie José Gerard DOWARKASING, Mokshanand | MSM/MMM | Christian Hindu |
| 18 | KHUSHIRAM, Khushhal Chand, AUROOMOOGA PUTTEN, Prithviraj, PERRIER, Anne-Marie Danielle | MSM/MMM | Hindu Christian |
| 19 | Paul Berenger CUTTAREE, Jaya Krishna ABDOOLA, Mohamed Feroz | MSM/MMM | Christian Hindu Muslim |
| 20 | BHAGWAN, Rajesh Anand LABELLE, Marie Noëlle Françoise ALLET, Daniel Jean Maurice | MSM/MMM | Hindu Christian |
References
- "Early results indicate opposition landslide in Mauritius elections". CNN. 2000-09-12. Archived from the original on 2007-10-06. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
- "Mauritius Pundits Predict Opposition Victory". Sustainable democracy. 2000-09-08. Archived from the original on December 6, 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-31.
- "Carnival Atmosphere As Thousands End Mauritian Polls". Sustainable democracy. 2000-09-10. Archived from the original on December 6, 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
- "Smooth Turnover Following Mauritian Election". Sustainable democracy. 2000-09-14. Archived from the original on November 30, 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-31.
- "Opposition alliance wins by landslide in Mauritius vote". CNN. 2000-09-12. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
- "Color, contradictions mark run-up to Mauritius elections". CNN. 2000-09-10. Archived from the original on 2007-10-07. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
- "Mauritian voters trek to polls in ideal conditions". Sustainable democracy. 2000-09-11. Archived from the original on 2007-08-26. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
- "Sadc Parliamentary Forum Applauds Mauritian Election". Sustainable democracy. 2000-09-13. Archived from the original on December 6, 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
- "Mauritius opposition landslide win". BBC Online. 2000-09-12. Retrieved 2007-12-25.
- "Mauritian Election Results Disappoint Gender Activists". Sustainable democracy. 2000-09-14. Archived from the original on January 20, 2008. Retrieved 2007-12-31.