Opposition Candidate Ahead of President in Liberia’s run off Presidential Poll
With results in from more than 85% of polling stations in Liberia’s run-off election, opposition candidate Joseph Boakai is slightly ahead of President George Weah.
Mr. Boakai so far has 50.6% of the vote, while Mr. Weah is on 49.4%, the election commission says.
The two were separated by just over 7,000 votes in the first round in October, triggering Tuesday’s run-off.
The latest results from Tuesday’s run-off come after votes from just over 5,000 of the 5,890 polling stations have been collated.
Read Also:
US President Meets Israeli Leader to Push for Protection of Gaza Civilians
It is unclear when the final result will be out. The election commission has 15 days from polling day of announce it.
A run-off was predicted, but Mr Boakai did better than expected.
Mr Boakai’s campaigning has focused on the need to rescue the nation from what he calls “mismanagement” by Mr Weah’s administration.
The president dismissed Mr Boakai’s allegations, saying that he has made significant strides, including introducing free tuition for university students.
This is the fourth time a presidential election has taken place in Liberia since a civil war ended more than 20 years ago.
Observers from the regional bloc, Ecowas, said the run-off was largely peaceful, AFP news agency reports.
However, there were isolated incidents that led to “injuries and hospitalisations” in the provinces of Lofa, Nimba, Bong and Montserrado, AFP quotes the observers as saying.
