2015 Mauritian municipal elections

During the previous municipal elections, held on 9 December 2012, the then-opposition Remake 2000 alliance, comprising the MMM and MSM,^[1] won a majority of seats on the councils of Quatre Bornes and Port Louis,^[2] and secured all 18 seats in Beau Bassin-Rose Hill.^[1] The Labour-led alliance, which also included the PMSD, and controlled all five councils before the election, only maintained its majority in Vacoas-Phoenix. The two coalitions were tied in Curepipe; however, Labour retained control of this council after it struck a deal with Mouvement Mauricien Social Democrate (MMSD), which secured one seat.^[1] Voter turnout across the five municipalities reached 44%, a slight increase from 40% in 2005.^[3] The 2012 elections were the first municipal polls to be held since a female quota took effect earlier that year, which mandated that women make up no less than one-third of contestants in local elections.^[4]

The alliances later shifted, with the MMM entering a coalition with the Labour Party,^[5] and the MSM forming Alliance Lepep with the PMSD and Muvman Liberater.^[6] Alliance Lepep won the 2014 snap parliamentary election in an upset, defeating Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam's Labour-led coalition.^[7] Shortly after assuming office, the Alliance Lepep government, led by Prime Minister Anerood Jugnauth, scheduled early municipal elections in 2015, seeking to capitalise on its parliamentary victory and the opposition being in a state of disarray.^[1]

The elections were conducted using the plurality block voting system.^[8] Amendments to the Local Government Act, which Jugnauth's government introduced shortly before the elections, resulted in an increase in the number of seats on all five municipal councils from a combined 90 to 120. All council wards would thereafter return four members instead of three.^[9][10] As such, the membership of the Municipal City Council of Port Louis rose from 24 to 32, with the capital having eight wards. Seats on the Municipal Town Councils of Beau Bassin-Rose Hill and Vacoas-Phoenix each increased from 18 to 24, with both towns having six wards. The Municipal Town Councils of Curepipe and Quatre Bornes, on the other hand, each expanded from 15 to 20 members and had five wards.^[11][12] Alliances and groups that fielded more than two candidates were required to ensure that two-thirds of their contestant lineup was not of the same gender.^[9] If a group did not comply with the gender quota in a municipality, its candidates, while still allowed to contest the elections, could only run as independents.^[13][14]

The president of Mauritius, on the advice of the prime minister, sets the dates of the municipal elections. Eligible candidates had to be least 18 years old and residents of the municipality in which they run. Voters were also required to be at least 18 years old to register.^[8] A total of 395,961 individuals across the five municipalities were registered to vote in the elections.^[15] After the elections, each council elects a mayor and a deputy mayor.^[8] All electors were required to show a form of identification before voting.^[16]

A total of 539 candidates, including 174 women, were registered to contest the elections across the five municipalities, an increase from 347 in 2012. Port Louis had the largest share of candidates, at 188. Curepipe was the only other municipality to have over 100 contestants, with 107, followed by 89 in Vacoas-Phoenix and 85 in Quatre Bornes. Beau Bassin-Rose Hill had 70 candidates, the fewest among the municipalities.^[13] Prime Minister Jugnauth's Alliance Lepep, comprising the MSM, ML, and the PMSD, fielded 120 candidates.^[17][18] The MMM, led by Paul Bérenger,^[17] participated in the elections despite the absence of its coalition partner, the Labour Party, and emerged as the other major bloc alongside Alliance Lepep. The Rezistans ek Alternative party, led by Ashok Subron, was the only bloc, aside from Alliance Lepep and the MMM, to contest all five municipalities.^[13]

The contestant lists of the Mauritius Independent Party and the People's Movement in Quatre Bornes, and the lineup of the Mauritian Solidarity Front in Vacoas-Phoenix, failed to meet the quota in these municipalities. As a result, their candidates in these areas had to run as independents.^[13][14] The Labour Party declined to contest the elections, with Ramgoolam citing the party's financial issues due to the state investigating his accounts.^[19] The Labour leader also claimed the elections would not be free and fair, and that voters risked facing repercussions for supporting his party.^[17] Unlike in previous elections, the political party affiliation of candidates contesting under the banner of an alliance was listed on the ballot.^[16]

Many groups reportedly had a lower presence during the campaign period than in the 2014 parliamentary election.^[20] The two major blocs, Alliance Lepep and the MMM, frequently clashed during the campaign, and many of the contesting groups reportedly had similar platforms.^[21] Prime Minister Jugnauth did not actively campaign, delegating the task to other senior members of Alliance Lepep. Jugnauth expressed concern about potential low voter turnout and stated that municipal residents who refused to cast a ballot should be stripped of their voting rights.^[22] The MMM contested the elections at a time it was suffering from internal divisions, stemming from the party's defeat in the 2014 parliamentary election and some members expressing discontent at Bérenger's refusal to step down as party leader. Coupled with the Labour Party's absence, observers predicted that the elections would witness low voter turnout. Many dissatisfied MMM supporters reportedly preferred to abstain rather than vote for Alliance Lepep or other alternatives.^[23] The Rezistans ek Alternativ party presented itself as a "credible alternative" to the major blocs,^[13] with Subron stating it was the only left-wing group contesting all municipalities.^[24]

Alliance Lepep campaigned on increasing autonomy for each municipal council. Included in the bloc's manifesto were plans to implement a smart city model, with free Wi-Fi in designated areas, aimed at increasing internet access, especially in working-class neighbourhoods. The alliance also promised to construct pedestrian zones in each municipality, which would be utilised for cultural, commercial and artistic events, and to build hawker centres to accommodate street vendors. Jugnauth claimed the MMM was not campaigning as a single group and that it had maintained a tacit alliance with the Labour Party,^[25] which Bérenger denied.^[26]

Despite the MMM's internal turmoil, Bérenger expressed confidence in the party's chances and believed the elections would deliver a rebound for the MMM.^[26] The party highlighted its governing record on the councils, referring to the "innovative era" from 1977 onwards when the MMM came to power in many municipalities, and characterised the years before, when the PMSD was in the majority, as the "dark years". The party also criticised alleged corruption in the Alliance Lepep government, promising more accountability and transparency. Included in the MMM's platform were proposals to improve the waste collection system and restoring each council's financial independence.^[27]

President Kailash Purryag issued the election writs on 4 May.^[28] The nomination day for contestants to register their candidacies occurred on 23 May, and had until 26 May to withdraw if they intended to do so. Groups that failed to comply with the gender quota had two hours after nominations closed at 15:00 to implement the required changes or risk disqualification.^[29] Days before the election, MMM MP Reza Uteem and several MMM candidates, including Lord Mayor Jenito Seedoo, were reportedly assaulted by MSM members in the Tranquebar neighbourhood of Port Louis. One of alleged attackers implicated was Mahmad Jaunbaccus, the husband of Alliance Lepep MP Roubina Jaddoo. The group, which had gone to inquire about illegal posters claiming the MMM had received money from the British American Investment Company, subsequently filed a police report. Uteem denounced the violence and urged MMM supporters to remain calm. The MSM members also accused the present MMM lawmakers of assault.^[30] On election day, polling stations were open from 7:00 to 18:00.^[31] By midday, voter turnout had reached only an average of 11%, and Electoral Commissioner Irfan Rahman said many polling stations were virtually deserted.^[32] Vote counting began the day after the election.^[31] Citing an intention to increase transparency, Rahman announced that each polling station would display the results on a board as vote counting took place, a practice he said was inspired by the conduct of elections in Madagascar.^[16]