General elections were held in Mauritania on 8 August 1971 to elect a President and National Assembly, the first time the two elections had been held together. At the time, the country was a one-party state with the Mauritanian People's Party (PPM) as the sole legal party. Its leader, incumbent President Moktar Ould Daddah, was the only candidate in the presidential election, and was re-elected unopposed to a third term in office,^[1] whilst the PPM won all 50 seats in the National Assembly election. Voter turnout for the parliamentary election was reported to be 95.6%.^[2]

Quick Facts Registered, Turnout ...

1971 Mauritanian general election

8 August 1971 (1971-08-08)
Registered	534,994
Presidential election
← 1966 1976 →
Turnout	96.29% (0.09pp)
Candidate Mokhtar Ould Daddah Party PPM Popular vote 512,708 Percentage 100%
Parliamentary election
← 1965 1975 →
All 50 seats in the National Assembly 26 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	95.59% (2.77pp)
Party Leader % Seats +/– PPM Mokhtar Ould Daddah 100 50 +10 This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.

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Mauritania came under the direct control of the French Colonial Empire during 1933.^[3] After independence on 28 November 1960, the country declared itself the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, with Ould Daddah becoming its first President.^[3] He declared the country a one-party state in 1964, and during 1965 all parties merged with the ruling Mauritanian Assembly Party to form the Mauritanian People's Party.^[3]