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Ivory Coast President is Declared Winner of Saturday’s Election, Clinching a Third Term in Office
Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara has apparently won a controversial third term in office in a landslide victory in the West African nation’s October 3 presidential election.
Electoral commission president Ibrahime Coulibaly-Kuibiert declared Quattara the winner early Tuesday, saying with just over 50 percent of voters casting ballots, Quattara obtained just over 3,000,000 votes, which is a little more than 94 percent of the tally.
The Ivory Coast constitutional council still has to validate the election results and declare a winner after hearing any complaints or challenges.
Quattara secured the apparent victory in the midst of deadly pre-election violence and a boycott of the election orchestrated by two opposition leaders.
The top opposition candidates, former President Henri Konan Bedie and ex-Prime Minister Pascal Affi N'Guessan, say they will not recognize a Ouattara victory, claiming it was slanted because they called for a boycott of Saturday’s election.
They also said Quattara’s run for a third term is illegal because it violates the constitution, which allows presidents to serve two terms. Ouattara rejected that notion, saying the approval of a new constitution in 2016 allowed him to seek a third term.
The opposition announced late Monday the formation of a transition council that would help create an alternative government, which will outline a blueprint for a fair presidential election.
The Ivory Coast government did not issue an immediate response to the opposition’s plans.
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