Madagascar’s electoral authority has proposed bringing forward the presidential elections from December to August.
The call follows on-going demonstrations in the island nation located to the southeast coast of Africa, against recent changes to the electoral regulations.
The opposition said the new law requires a presidential candidate to produce a report on all previous judicial convictions, which could be a disadvantage for their candidate. Marc Ravalomanana was convicted by a court when he was in exile after the 2009 coup for a range of offences.
Last week the country’s top court dismissed parts of the controversial new rules, giving the opposition some relief.
The call by the electoral commission is in line with the Constitution, which allows for early polls if all parties are in agreement.
The commission has invited opposition and government lawmakers to discuss its proposal on Friday.
The president is yet to declare if he will be running for another term. The opposition has however insisted it will only discuss an election date if he steps down.
