Liberia: Joseph Boakai Declared President-elect

Facts

• Liberia's National Electoral Commission has declared that opposition Unity Party candidate and former vice president Joseph Boakai has defeated incumbent George Weah in the presidential run-off.¹
• With all ballots counted in the tightly contested Nov. 14 election, Boakai had received 814,481 votes (50.64%), while Weah got 793,914 (49.36%). Turnout in the presidential run-off was 66.12% of total registered voters.²
• On Sunday, Boakai said that his administration will focus on pressing issues, including corruption and the lack of essential services, as well as review mining concessions to ensure that Liberia's rich mineral reserves are used to benefit the country.³
• Pres. Weah conceded defeat on Friday after nearly all polling stations had been tallied. However, his party has lodged two election-related appeals with the electoral commission, which will investigate them and reach a decision within 30 days.⁴
• His call to supporters to peacefully accept the electoral defeat paves the way for Liberia's second democratic transfer of power in more than seven decades, standing out in West and Central Africa, which have faced eight military takeovers in three years.⁵
• Meanwhile, on Monday, an unidentified car rammed into a crowd gathered outside the Union Party headquarters to celebrate the final announcement of elections, killing at least 12 supporters and injuring dozens of others.⁶

Sources: ¹Le Monde.fr, ²TRT Afrika, ³Reuters, ⁴France 24, ⁵DW and ⁶Liberian Observer.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by The NewDawn Liberia. The greatest victor of this presidential election is undoubtedly Liberia's democracy — still in its infancy — and its institutions, especially considering that peaceful transitions of power have been relatively rare in West Africa. Boakai has won the popular vote and will become the next president of the country, thereby proving doomsayers who claimed Liberia would eventually collapse again after the 14-year civil war, resoundingly wrong.
• Narrative B, as provided by Liberian Observer. Though Weah has conceded defeat to Boakai, his commitment to democratic values is, at the very least, questionable, as he has urged the president-elect not to pursue officials from his administration on corruption charges. Whether Boakai will fulfill his campaign promises to tackle corruption from day one or succeed in protecting the political establishment to keep the peace, is yet to be seen.