List of political parties in Niger
This article lists political parties in Niger. Niger has a multi-party system, with two to three strong political parties and smaller parties electorally successful to take seats in the National Assembly. These smaller parties frequently enter into electoral coalitions with their more powerful opponents, forming blocs in both government and opposition. Party naming. Nigerien political parties are commonly known both by their acronyms and a nickname. The latter tradition began prior to independence with the Nigerien Democratic Union-Sawaba. Sawaba ("Freedom" in Hausa) became the most common name of the party. Today all  large parties have an official "nickname", usually in Hausa, Djerma or other national languages, while the official party name is in French. Multi-party democracy. Niger banned all opposition parties from 1959 (prior to independence) to 1991. During the First Republic (1960-1974), the PPN-RDA was the sole party. From 1987-1991, MNSD-Nassara was the only legal party. Both parties survive in somewhat altered forms.