Political veteran Joseph Boakai was on Monday declared the winner of Liberia’s presidential election, beating incumbent George Weah, the National Electoral Commission (NEC) said after completing the ballot count.
Boakai won with 50.64 per cent of the vote, against 49.36 per cent of the vote for former international football star Weah, Davidetta Browne Lansanah, president of the commission, told reporters.
Boakai won with only a 20,567-vote margin.
Weah, however, already conceded defeat on Friday evening, based on the results of more than 99.98 per cent of the polling stations.
However, the commission head said that on Friday it had received two appeals from Weah’s party concerning the conduct of the election in Nimba County.
The commission has 30 days to investigate and reach a decision, she said.
Meanwhile, REPORTERS AT LARGE earlier reported a former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank, as calling on African leaders and Nigeria, especially, to learn from the outcome of Liberia’s presidential poll won by an opposition candidate, Dr. Joseph Boakai, and the action of the incumbent President, George Weah.
Frank, who made the call in a statement in Abuja, also urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the nation’s security agencies to learn from the experience of Liberia as they prepare for the 2027 poll.
He congratulated Liberia’s President-Elect, Boakai, on his hard-won victory and equally commended President Weah for gracefully conceding defeat.