Social Democratic Rally

The Social Democratic Rally was a political party in Niger. Its president was Amadou Cheiffou and its first secretary-general is Mahamadou Ali Tchémogo.

History

The RSD-Gaskiya was founded by Cheiffou in January 2004 as a split from the Democratic and Social Convention, and fared well in the July 2004 municipal elections. In the Nigerien [general election, 2004|2004 general elections] Cheiffou was nominated as the RSD candidate, receiving 6.35% of the vote and placing fourth out of six candidates; the party subsequently backed incumbent President Mamadou Tandja in the second round, which he won with 66% of the vote. In the parliamentary elections, the RSD-Gaskiya received 7.1% of the vote, winning seven of the 113 seats in the National Assembly.
In May 2009, the party was one of a handful of parties that supported President Tandja's call for a referendum to create a new constitution that would remove term limits on the presidency. After Nigerien [constitutional referendum, 2009|the referendum], the party placed second in the Nigerien [parliamentary election, 2009|October 2009 parliamentary election] amidst an opposition boycott; receiving 16% of the vote, it won 15 seats. Cheiffou was the RSD presidential candidate again for the 2011 general elections; he finished fifth in a field of ten candidates with 4% of the vote. In the parliamentary elections the party lost all 15 seats as its vote share fell to 1.8%.
The 2016 general elections saw Cheiffou run for the presidency again, finishing eighth out of fifteen candidates with 1.8% of the vote. However, the party regained parliamentary representation, winning four seats in the National Assembly.