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Democrats Search For New 2024 Candidate After Biden’s Exit

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by Wale Ewedimi

Democrats were in uncharted territory Monday as they raced against the clock to find a new standard-bearer after President Joe Biden’s stunning late exit from the 2024 race for the White House.

Vice President Kamala Harris was in pole position as the party promised a “transparent and orderly process” to replace the 81-year-old Biden, who bowed Sunday to Democratic concerns over his age and capacity to beat Republican Donald Trump in November.

The announcement set off a scramble to confirm a new candidate at the Democratic convention in Chicago on August 19 — and perhaps weeks sooner.

Democratic lawmakers and party elders, including at least a third of US senators, some key governors, and Bill and Hillary Clinton, have rallied behind Harris, who crucially also received Biden’s swift endorsement.

But many big names — from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and his influential predecessor Nancy Pelosi to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and former president Barack Obama — were initially holding back.

“We will be navigating uncharted waters in the days ahead,” Obama said in a statement in the wake of Biden’s announcement.

“But I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges.”

– ‘Full support’ –

Harris — who is Black and South Asian, and the only woman vice president in US history — appeared to have no immediate rivals, and any challenger may have a very small window to pitch an alternative path forward.

Potential convention delegates were being told to expect a vote on August 1 to put Harris’s name formally atop the ticket, more than two weeks before the gathering, CBS reported.

Calls for an open convention in Chicago have been muted so far, with potential challengers such as popular California governor Gavin Newsom backing Harris.

“Yes, there’s a process to go through and, yes, she must earn it. But she earned in many ways when Joe Biden selected her to be his vice president,” former Missouri senator Claire McCaskill said on MSNBC.

The Democratic ticket has been in disarray since Biden’s dismal debate performance in June, with Republicans coalescing around Trump after the attempt on his life at a rally in Pennsylvania eight days ago.

Biden spent more than three weeks resisting calls to step down but then dropped his bombshell as he recovered from Covid at his Delaware beach house.

The veteran Democrat said it had been the “greatest honor of my life” to be president and promised to address the nation later this week, offering his “full support and endorsement” for Harris.

– Harris ‘most likely’ –

Biden’s exit makes him the first president in 56 years not to seek a second term and the first in US history to quit so late in the calendar.

Donna Patterson, an analyst and professor in Delaware State University’s political science department, said his exit had injected “new energy” into the campaign.

“In the hours since the announcement, and with Biden’s endorsement, a Kamala Harris presidential candidacy seems most likely,” she added.

Biden’s move also makes Trump, 78, the oldest presidential nominee in US history. He fired off a series of posts on Truth Social in reaction to the news slamming Biden as “not fit to run” and “certainly not fit to serve.”

He also called for the next presidential debate, set for September, to be moved from ABC News to Trump-friendly Fox News.

Meanwhile running mate J.D. Vance underlined that Harris had been “every step of the way” with Biden, “the worst president in my lifetime.”

The vice president struggled to make an impact in her first years in the White House, but performed strongly on the campaign trail on key issues such as abortion.

“Anyone the Democrats nominate — and I’m pretty sure it will be Harris — will have challenges,” said Donald Nieman, a political analyst and professor at Binghamton University in New York state.

“But the announcement shifts the focus away from Biden’s physical and intellectual limitations, where it has been for the past three weeks.”

AFP

International

Legendary conservationist, Jane Goodall, dies at 91

Despite challenges in the rugged landscapes of Gombe National Park, she pursued her dream of living among and studying wildlife.

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•Dr. Jane Goodall

Dr Jane Goodall, the world-renowned primatologist, anthropologist, and conservationist, has died at the age of 91.

Jane Goodall Institute confirmed her death on Wednesday, stating that she died of natural causes in California while on a speaking tour of the United States.

Goodall’s groundbreaking research on chimpanzees transformed the scientific understanding of humanity’s closest relatives in the animal kingdom.

Beginning her studies in Tanzania at just 26 years old, she documented chimpanzees’ ability to display human-like behaviors such as affection, tool-making, and even conflict, findings that revolutionized ethology and earned her global recognition.

In her reflection on her early discoveries, Goodall once told ABC News: “Their behavior, with their gestures, kissing, embracing, holding hands and patting on the back … the fact that they can actually be violent and brutal … but also loving and altruistic.”

Her fascination with animals dated back to childhood, inspired by books like Doctor Dolittle and Tarzan.

Despite challenges in the rugged landscapes of Gombe National Park, she pursued her dream of living among and studying wildlife.

Her doctoral thesis at the University of Cambridge detailed her first five years of observations.

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Deported Nigerian Claims Ghanaian Officials Abandoned Him in Togo

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A Nigerian man deported from the United States to Ghana has alleged that he is now stranded in Togo after Ghanaian authorities secretly transferred him and five others across the border without informing Togolese officials.

According to on Wednesday, the man, who spoke anonymously, said he was initially held at a military camp in Ghana after being deported last month along with other West African nationals. He claims Ghanaian officials promised to relocate them to better accommodation but instead covertly transported them into neighbouring Togo via a back route.

“They did not take us through the main border; they took us through the back door. They paid the police there and dropped us in Togo,” he said.

The group, which includes three Nigerians, a Liberian, and others, is now sheltering in a hotel in Lomé, the Togolese capital. None of them have valid documentation, and they are relying on hotel staff to help receive financial aid from relatives abroad.

“We’re struggling to survive in Togo without any documentation,” the man told the BBC. “None of us has family here. We’re just stuck.”

He said life in the Ghanaian military camp was “deplorable,” citing poor water, lack of medical care, and harsh conditions. After complaints to authorities, the group was told they would be moved to a hotel. Instead, they were driven to the Togo border and allegedly coerced under false pretenses.

“When we arrived [at the border], we asked what we were doing there. They told us we needed to sign some paperwork to go to a hotel. We didn’t sign anything,” he said.

The man also shared the personal toll of his deportation. “I have a house in the US where my kids live. How am I supposed to pay the mortgage? My kids can’t see me. It’s just so stressful.”

He is reportedly a member of the Yoruba Self-Determination Movement, an organisation campaigning for an independent Yoruba nation in south-west Nigeria. He fears persecution if forced to return to Nigeria and claims he had court-ordered protection in the US, which should have prevented his deportation. The US government has not publicly addressed this claim.

The deportee was part of a larger group of West Africans — including citizens of Liberia, The Gambia, and Togo — who were flown from US detention facilities to Ghana last month. Human rights lawyers representing the group have filed legal action against both the US and Ghana, citing violations of international protection and due process.

Ghanaian officials, including Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, have defended their decision, saying Ghana accepted the deportees based on “pan-African empathy” and denied receiving any financial compensation.

However, the deal — announced by President John Mahama — has drawn criticism from opposition lawmakers, who are now calling for its suspension until it is properly reviewed and ratified by parliament. Despite the controversy, the government is reportedly preparing to receive an additional 40 deportees.

As the legal battle unfolds and diplomatic pressure mounts, the fate of the stranded deportees in Togo remains uncertain.

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Seychelles presidential vote going to runoff, electoral commission says

Herminie, head of the United Seychelles (US) party, secured 48.8% of the vote, while Ramkalawan, of the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS), followed closely with 46.4%, the electoral commission said.

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•Image : (Up) Seychelles opposition leader of the United Seychelles (US) party Patrick Herminie; and the incumbent President Wavel Ramkalawan of the LDS party

The Seychelles presidential election will go to a runoff between opposition leader Patrick Herminie and incumbent President Wavel Ramkalawan after no clear winner emerged in the first round of voting, the electoral commission said on Sunday.

Ramkalawan had been looking to block a comeback by the party that previously dominated politics for four decades in Africa’s wealthiest country per capita.

The western Indian Ocean archipelago is a magnet for investment and security cooperation with China, Gulf nations and India.

Herminie, head of the United Seychelles (US) party, secured 48.8% of the vote, while Ramkalawan, of the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS), followed closely with 46.4%, the electoral commission said.

Neither candidate surpassed the 50% threshold required for an outright victory in the first round.

The US party also made significant gains in the National Assembly, winning 15 constituency seats and an additional four seats through proportional representation, giving it a clear parliamentary majority.

(Reuters).

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