1992 Cameroonian presidential election
11 October 1992
Registered4,195,687
Turnout71.87%
 
Nominee Paul Biya John Fru Ndi Bello Bouba Maigari
Party RDPC SDF UNDP
Popular vote 1,185,466 1,066,602 569,887
Percentage 39.98% 35.97% 19.22%
Results by province
Biya:      40-50%      60–70%      70–80%      >90%
Ndi:      50-60%      60–70%      80–90%
Maigari:      50-60%      60-70%
President before election

Paul Biya
RDPC

 Elected President

Paul Biya
RDPC

Presidential elections were held in Cameroon on 11 October 1992. They were the first presidential election since multi-party politics had been legalised, and were also the first to feature more than one candidate. Incumbent Paul Biya won with 40% of the vote.[1] Voter turnout was 72%.[2]

Background

The 1992 presidential elections were a crucial moment in Cameroon's post-independence history. Although an assortment of opposition leaders—most importantly the anglophone Social Democratic Front leader John Fru Ndi—furiously opposed President Biya and sought to unseat him between 1990 and 1992, they were ultimately unable to do so. Although opposition was successful in forcing Biya to accept multi-party politics and severely pressured his regime, he nevertheless retained control of the country and faced a divided opposition in the 1992 elections. The opposition's failure to present a single candidate offered a significant advantage to Biya, as the electoral law did not provide for a second round, and therefore the opposition candidates could not unite against Biya in the event he failed to win a majority.

Results

Official results showed Biya winning the election with 40% of the vote, while Fru Ndi trailed with 36%. The results were denounced as fraudulent by the opposition, and Fru Ndi claimed victory, but his claim proved fruitless.

CandidatePartyVotes%
Paul BiyaCameroon People's Democratic Movement1,185,46639.98
John Fru NdiSocial Democratic Front1,066,60235.97
Bello Bouba MaigariNational Union for Democracy and Progress569,88719.22
Adamou Ndam NjoyaCameroon Democratic Union107,4113.62
Jean-Jacques EkindiProgressive Movement23,5250.79
Emah OtuGrouping of Patriotic Forces12,5450.42
Total2,965,436100.00
Valid votes2,965,43698.34
Invalid/blank votes50,0121.66
Total votes3,015,448100.00
Registered voters/turnout4,195,68771.87
Source: Nohlen et al.

Aftermath

After the election, the opposition began a long and gradual decline in strength from which it has never recovered, while Biya began to consolidate power again.

References

  1. ↑ Elections in Cameroon, African Elections Database
  2. ↑ Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich & Bernhard Thibaut (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p184 ISBN 0-19-829645-2
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.