The National Umma Party Sudan is an Islamic centrist political party

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

 in Sudan

Sudan

Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...

.

Foundation

In August 1944 Sayyid Abd al-Rahman al-Mahdi

Abd al-Rahman al-Mahdi

Sayyid Abd al-Rahman al-Mahdi was one of the leading religious and political figures during the colonial era in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan , and continued to exert great authority as leader of the Neo-Mahdists after Sudan became independent...

, leader of the Ansar

Ansar (Sudan)

The Ansar , or followers of the Mahdi, is a Sufi religious movement in the Sudan whose followers are disciples of Muhammad Ahmad , the self-proclaimed Mahdi....

, met with senior Congress members and tribal leaders to discuss formation of a pro-independence political party that was not associated with Mahdism. The first step taken was the launch of a new daily newspaper, al-Umma (The Community). In February 1945 the al-Umma party had been organized and the party's first secretary, Abdullah Khalil, applied for a government license. The constituion made no mention of Sayyid 'Abd al-Rahman or of the Ansar. The only visible link to 'Abd al-Rahman was the party's reliance on him for funding. However, there were rumors that al-Umma had been created by the government and aimed to place Sayyid 'Abd al-Rahman on the throne. These rumors persisted until June 1945, when the government publicly said it would not support a Mahdist monarchy.

Sadiq al Mahdi was a prominent leader of the faction through much of the last century.

Recent years

Today there are five active political factions of the Umma Party each claiming political legitimacy.
The most prominent of these factions is the Umma Party (Reform and Renewal) headed by Mubarak al Fadil al Mahdi

Mubarak al Fadil al Mahdi

Mubarak Abdullahi El-Fadil El-Mahdi commonly known as Mubarak El-Fadil is an Economist and prominent Politician, Chairman of the Sudanese UMMA Party...

, who is the first cousin of Sadiq al Mahdi and former Interior Minister

Interior minister

An interior ministry is a government ministry typically responsible for policing, national security, and immigration matters. The ministry is often headed by a minister of the interior or minister of home affairs...

 when the Umma Party was last in power under Sadiq as Prime Minister

Prime minister

A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...

 from 1986 to 1989.
Another faction of the Umma Party (Reform and Renewal) is led by Information Minister Alzahawi Ibrahim Maalik.

Another faction of the Umma Party (General Leadership) is led by Dr. al Sadiq al Hadi al Mahdi, who is the first cousin of Sadiq al Mahdi. Dr al Sadiq is the son of Imam al Hadi al Mahdi who led a faction of the Umma Party that rivaled a faction that was led by Sadiq al Mahdi in the 1960s. Dr al Sadiq is an advisor to the President of Sudan. The Umma Party (General Leadership) is part of the current government and has agreed to continue cooperation with Sudan's ruling National Congress Party in the mid-interim period after 2008.

The last faction of the Umma Party is the Federal Umma Party, led by Ahmad Babiker Nahar, the current minister of Environment and Physical Development.

External links

• Umma Party (English and Arabic Web site)
• Sudan Electionnaire