Incumbent President Ouattara declared winner of Ivory Coast election

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,

In power since 2011, 83-year-old Alassane Ouattara secures fourth term in vote that excluded two main rivals.

President Alassane Ouattara has won re-election in the Ivory Coast’s presidential vote, according to provisional results.

The country’s Independent Electoral Commission announced on Monday that the 83-year-old incumbent had won a fourth term with 89.77 percent of the ballots cast.

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Nearly nine million Ivorians were eligible to vote on Saturday in a race that excluded Ouattara’s top rivals. Ex-President Laurent Gbagbo was barred over a criminal conviction, and former Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam was disqualified for acquiring French citizenship.

The remaining four candidates were not seen as viable contenders, as they lacked backing from a major political party and significant financial resources.

One of them, former Commerce Minister Jean-Louis Billon, on Sunday had congratulated Ouattara after early partial results showed the latter with a strong lead nationwide, winning upwards of 90 percent of the vote with turnout close to 100 percent in northern strongholds.

The political veteran was also ahead in traditionally pro-opposition areas in the south and parts of the economic hub Abidjan where turnout was low. In the southern city of Gagnoa, he won 92 percent of the vote but with a turnout rate of only 20 percent.

Many abstained amid widespread anger over Ouattara’s decision to run for a fourth consecutive term. Under the constitution, presidents may only serve a maximum of two terms, but the President argued his limit was “reset” by a 2016 constitutional overhaul.

In the weeks leading up to the election, sporadic protests broke out in response to the ban on key contenders from the polls, prompting the government to ban demonstrations and arresting over 200 people from campaign group the Common Front political movement.

Electoral commission president Ibrahime Coulibaly-Kuibiert earlier put turnout at around 50 percent – a similar level to 2020, when Ouattara won 94 percent of the vote in an election boycotted by the main opponents.

More to follow …