On 21 September 2020, after the coup d'état a few weeks before, Ndaw was named president by a group of 17 electors. Assimi Goïta was appointed vice president. Their interim government was scheduled to preside over a period of 18 months after the 2020 Malian coup d'état. A spokesperson for political-religious leader Mahmoud Dicko praised his nomination as president. Leaders of the M5-RFP, active since the 2020 Malian protests, also signalled support. Ndaw was inaugurated on 25 September.