Veteran Mauritian Leaders Square Off for Another Stint in Power

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Mauritius will return one of three leaders to power when the Indian Ocean island nation holds elections Thursday that appear too close to call.

Pravind Jugnauth, 57, the leader of the Alliance Morisien who was named prime minister when his father Anerood stood down two years ago, is angling for a parliamentary majority that would secure him another five years in office. His main rivals are Navinchandra Ramgoolam, 72, leader of the Labour Party/Parti Mauricien Social Democrate alliance who ruled for almost a decade before being voted out in 2014, and Paul Berenger, 74, who heads the Mouvement Militant Mauricien and was prime minister from 2003 to 2005.

Voters will choose 62 members of the National Assembly in a first-past-the-post system and the electoral commission will appoint as many as eight more. The assembly will then select the prime minister. The election is the first since 1976 that three significant blocs are vying for seats and could herald an era of political alliances in the nation of 1.27 million people should none of them win outright.

While a foundation started by Sudanese billionaire Mo Ibrahim has consistently ranked Mauritius as Africa’s best-governed country and the World Bank rates it as the continent’s easiest place to do business, the island is facing headwinds from the global slowdown. Economic growth has lagged the 4% target the incumbent government set when it took power in 2014 -- a status quo the International Monetary Fund expects to persist until 2021.

“Whoever is elected prime minister, their daunting task is the same,” said Takesh Luckho, an independent economist. “A new strategy is necessary for the ailing tourism industry. Mauritius has to shift to a high-end manufacturing industry. The sugar sector is in dire need of reforms.”

Jugnauth, who faced public criticism and protests when he bypassed the electorate to take power from his father, has highlighted the progress his administration has made in sustaining growth, introducing a national minimum wage and building a new light-rail network that’s due to start operating next month. He says he’ll raise old-age pensions by 45% to 9,000 rupees ($246) if he retains power, a pledge Berenger has matched and Ramgoolam has bettered with a promised increase of 61%.

Social media has played a prominent role in the campaign and there have been complaints by some of the candidates about the circulation of outdated speeches, racist comments and fake secret-service reports aimed at influencing the election outcome.

--With assistance from Mike Cohen.

To contact the reporter on this story: Kamlesh Bhuckory in Port Louis at kbhuckory1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Paul Richardson at pmrichardson@bloomberg.net, Rene Vollgraaff, Jacqueline Mackenzie

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