Liberia Counts Votes In Presidential and Parliamentary Polls

Vote counting is under way after polls closed Presidential and Parliamentary Elections in Liberia on Tuesday.

To avoid a run-off, the winner must secure more than 50% of votes cast to elect the president, members of the House of Representatives and half the Senate.

The incumbent President and Former Footballer George Weah, who’s seeking a second term, is the favorite against 19 rivals for the Presidency.

He is seeking a second term and faces his biggest challenge from former Vice-President Joseph Boakai, 78.

The electoral commission is due to begin publishing the first results today.

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Analysts believe the vote will most likely head to a runoff where Weah, 57, who was first elected in 2017 in Liberia’s first democratic change of government in 70 years, is likely to hold on to power.

He says he needs more time to fulfil his promise to rebuild the nation’s broken economy, institutions and infrastructure, including the country’s pitted roads.

“I have asked the Liberian people for a second-term mandate and that’s why we have come here,” Weah said after casting his ballot at the Kendeja Elementary School polling station in southern Monrovia.

“I have cast my vote and I am happy to exercise my constitutional right,” he said, wearing a crisp white djellaba robe and matching white baseball cap.

Weah has faced criticism from the opposition and some donor countries for not doing enough to tackle corruption during his first term in office. Last year, he fired his chief of staff and two other senior officials after the United States sanctioned them for corruption.