Benin’s President Says He Will Not Run for Third Term

President of Benin Thomas Boni Yayi says he will not run for a third term next year in accord with his country’s constitution, dismissing suspicions by the opposition that he would try to be re-elected.
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Benin’s President Says He Will Not Run for Third Term
Benin President Thomas Yayi Boni addresses the media upon arrival for the Donor Conference for Development in Mali, in Brussels, Wednesday, May 15, 2013. Mali aims to raise 2 billion euros ($2.6 billion) at an international donor conference to fund its recovery after Islamist militants marched on Bamako this year, prompting a French military intervention. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)
The Associated Press
6/9/2015
Updated:
6/9/2015

PARIS— President of Benin Thomas Boni Yayi says he will not run for a third term next year in accord with his country’s constitution, dismissing suspicions by the opposition that he would try to be re-elected.

“My name will not appear in any ballot anymore,” Boni Yayi said Tuesday following a meeting with French President Francois Hollande in Paris.

Boni Yayi said he will ensure that a democratic ballot is organized in 2016 to choose a new president.

The constitution of Benin imposes a two-term limit on presidential candidates. Suspicions that Boni Yayi would try to change the constitution has exacerbated political tensions in the country.

Hollande praised “the vitality” of Benin’s democracy in a written statement and announced he will visit the country next month.