Prominent Tanzanian opposition figure Tundu Lissu has been nominated to run for the presidency in October’s general elections by his Chadema party.
He fled the country after narrowly surviving an assassination attempt in the capital, Dodoma, in September 2017. He survived the attack with life-changing injuries after receiving treatment in Belgium and returned last week.
He will now challenge incumbent President John Magufuli.
The nomination was a test for Mr Lissu who had to prove to opponents that he’s still a force to be reckoned with. He got 405 votes out of 442 cast by members of the party’s national council.
His closest challenger, former Tourism Minister Lazaro Nyalandu, got 36 votes.
Mr Lissu has been a fierce critic of President Magufuli over the last four years.
He seems to have now marshalled support, which many describe as a hurricane, towards the October 28 elections. But questions linger whether it will be enough to unseat the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) which has dominated Tanzania’s politics since independence.
Mr Lissu’s nomination will be approved by the party’s national congress on Tuesday.
