Sudanese Socialist Union

Sudanese Socialist Union
الاتحاد الاشتراكي السوداني
LeaderGaafar Nimeiry
Founded25 May 1971
(54 years, 87 days)
Dissolved6 April 1985
(40 years, 136 days)
IdeologyArab nationalism[1][2]
Arab socialism[1]
Pan-Arabism[3]
Nasserism[3][1]
Authoritarianism
Anti-communism[4]
Islamism (From 1983)
Political positionLeft-wing
Factions:
Right-wing
ReligionSunni Islam
International affiliationMuslim Brotherhood
Party flag

The Sudanese Socialist Union (abbr. SSU; Arabic: الاتحاد الاشتراكي السوداني, romanizedAl-Ittihad Al-Ishtiraki As-Sudaniy) was a political party in Sudan. The SSU was the country's sole legal party from 1971 until 1985, when the regime of President Gaafar Nimeiry was overthrown in a military coup.[5][6]

Today the Sudanese Socialist Democratic Union (SSDU), the successor party to the SSU, exists as a registered political party in Sudan. Until 2018, it was led by Professor Dr. Fatima Abdel Mahmoud, who was Sudan's first female minister during the presidency of Gaafar Nimeiry as well as a former member of the National Congress Party.[6] Professor Dr. Fatima Abdel Mahmoud was the first woman to contest the presidency of Sudan in the 2010 general election.[6]

Electoral history

Presidential elections

Election Party candidate Votes % Result
1971 (referendum) Gaafar Nimeiry 3,839,374 98.6% Elected Green tickY
1977 5,624,128 99.1% Elected Green tickY
1983 99.6% Elected Green tickY

National Assembly elections

Election Party leader Seats +/– Position Result
1978 Jaafar Nimeiry
274 / 304
Increase 274 Increase 1st Sole legal party
1980
332 / 368
Increase 58 Steady 1st Sole legal party
1981–82
138 / 151
Decrease 194 Steady 1st Sole legal party

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Gresh, Alain (August 1989). "The Free Officers and the Comrades: The Sudanese Communist Party and Nimeiri Face-to-Face, 1969-1971". International Journal of Middle East Studies. 21 (3): 393–409. doi:10.1017/S0020743800032578. JSTOR 163451.
  2. ^ "This week in history: May 20-26 – 50 years ago: Military coup brings Nimeiry to power in Sudan". wsws.org. World Socialist Web Site. 2019-05-20. Retrieved 2025-08-12. Nimeiry was a member of the Sudanese Socialist Union (SSU), an Arab nationalist party.
  3. ^ a b Darwisheh, Housam (2020). "Egyptian-Sudanese relations amidst power struggles in the Middle East and Horn of Africa". Middle East Review. 7. J-STAGE: 65–79. doi:10.24765/merev.Vol.7_E-Art02. Retrieved 2025-08-09. The Nimeiri regime identified itself as pan-Arab, modeled on Nasser's revolution in Egypt, while Egyptian support helped Nimeiri to consolidate his rule.
  4. ^ "This week in history: May 20-26 – 50 years ago: Military coup brings Nimeiry to power in Sudan". wsws.org. World Socialist Web Site. 2019-05-20. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  5. ^ "Sudan buries ex-president who imposed Islamic rule". Daily News Egypt. 2009-05-31. Archived from the original on 2012-11-06. Retrieved 2010-08-09.
  6. ^ a b c Shinn, David H. (2015). "Other Northern Political Groups" (PDF). In Berry, LaVerle (ed.). Sudan: a country study (5th ed.). Washington, D.C.: Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. p. 261. ISBN 978-0-8444-0750-0. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-02-07. Retrieved 2021-06-04. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)