CAR Election: President Touadera Wins Re-Election With A Majority Of 53% Of Votes

Central African Republic’s (CAR) Electoral Commission on Monday announced President Faustin-Archange Touadera has been re-elected in the first round of the December 27 election, reported Africa News. However, the provincial results must be officially validated by the Constitutional Court if there are possible appeals.

During a news conference in the capital, Bangui, Mathias Morouba, president of the National Election Authority (ANE) said Touadera won an absolute majority with 53.92% of votes.

Morouba said about half of the country’s electorate, or around 910,000 people, had registered to vote. He added that the turnout among the registered voters was 76.3%. Among 15 contenders, the runner-up was former Prime Minister Anicet George Dologuele, who got 21.01 percent of the votes.

The CAR electoral commission president said provisional results of a legislative election held the same day will be announced at a later date.

The December presidential election was marred by violence by rebel groups who tried to disrupt the election after former President Francois Bozize was barred from running by the country’s highest court.

There were attacks and the destruction of voting materials, including on the voting day, in several areas that prevented voting in many polling stations. According to official figures, about 800 out of a total of 5,408 polling stations nationwide did not open on the day of the election as armed rebels attacked voters and barred electoral staff from working.

Last week, the opposition called for the vote to be canceled, claiming widespread ballot stuffing and a lack of observers in some areas.

“It’s a farce. There were many irregularities and instances of fraud,” Dologuele said.

But the CAR government continued to claim that the legislative and presidential elections were fully legitimate and credible.

Meanwhile, CAR prosecutors on Monday said an investigation had been launched into former president Francois Bozize, whom the government accuses of plotting a coup ahead of elections last month. He denies the allegations.