Monrovia – When the National Elections Commission released its third installment of results of the November 14 run-off election Friday, it set the stage for only the second successive transfer of power from one democratically elected government to the next, since the end of Liberian civil war.
The NEC results announced Friday made it mathematically impossible for the incumbent George Manneh Weah to clinch victory over his main rival and former vice president Joseph Nyumah Boakai of the opposition Unity Party. According to the NEC, President Weah obtained 785,778 votes (49.11%), while Ambassador Boakai as secured 814,212 votes (50.89%) resulting in a difference of 28,434 votes (1.78%).
Political analysts say, the margin between the two candidates at 99.58% of precincts reported is 28,434; and the total number of registered voters at the remaining polling precincts in Grand Kru is seven thousand, three hundred and eighteen (7,318), which is far less than the vote margin. Thus, President Weah’s quest to retain power was all but over.
Ironically, a breakdown of the number of registered voters in the unreported precincts by NEC records shows the unreported precincts in Grand Kru, not including one remaining precinct in Nimba which is not indicated by the NEC. The precinct is expected to be split between the two parties.
Moreover, political observers argue that the maximum number of registered voters at any precinct in Nimba is three thousand, one hundred and twenty-two (3,1220). Adding this to the total number of registered voters in the unreported precincts in Grand Kru brings the highest possible number of outstanding registered voters to ten thousand, four hundred and forty (10,440) which is still less than the vote difference between the two candidates. So, based on the NEC current report, the election is decided – Boakai has indeed made history, marking the first time a former ruling party had returned to state power.
Concession Call to JNB
In a move likely to cement President Weah’s legacy, the President took many by surprise when he placed a call to former Vice President Boakai late Friday evening, declaring his utmost respect for the democratic process that has defined Liberia.
In a speech, late Friday, addressing the outcome of the run-off elections, President Weah said, though the results announced by NEC is not the final, it does indicate that former Vice President Boakai is in a lead that makes it impossible for him to surpass.
“This is a time for graciousness in defeat, a time to place our country above party, and patriotism above personal interest. I remain your President until the handover of power, and I will continue to work for the good of Liberia. Let us heal the divisions caused by the campaign and come together as One Nation and One United People.”
President George Manneh Weah
Said President Weah: “Tonight, as we acknowledge the results, let us also recognize that the true winners of these elections are the people of Liberia. Through your peaceful and orderly exercise of your constitutional right to vote, you have once again demonstrated your commitment to the democratic principles that bind us together as a nation.”
President Weah trumpeted that under his leadership, the 2023 Presidential elections were organized “with a promise to the Liberian people – a promise of fairness, peace, inclusiveness, transparency, and credibility. I am proud to say that we have fulfilled that promise. The Liberian people have spoken, and we have heard their voice.”
President Weah was quick to acknowledge that the closeness of the results reveals a deep division within the country.
The President averred: “As we transition to a new administration, we must be vigilant to the dangers of division, and must work together to find common ground. Now, more than ever, unity is paramount for the love of Mama Liberia.”
For President Weah, his party, once a firebrand opposition powerhouse in Liberia, has lost the election, but Liberia has won. “This is a time for graciousness in defeat, a time to place our country above party, and patriotism above personal interest. I remain your President until the handover of power, and I will continue to work for the good of Liberia. Let us heal the divisions caused by the campaign and come together as One Nation and One United People.”
A Boost for Fragile West Africa
The President’s concession come at a time when the West African sub-region has been dealing with a widescale post-election upheaval marred by allegations of fraud and irregularities.
In next-door Sierra Leone, the incumbent President Julius Maada Bio won re-election, but his main challenger, Samura Kamara of the All-People’s Congress (APC), who came second with 41.16 percent, was quick to reject the results. Winning candidates are required to secure 55 percent of votes, and Bio narrowly avoided a second round.
International observers noted the “statistical inconsistencies” between the partial results and the results and condemned “the lack of transparency” in the ballot count, while calling for peaceful dialogue to resolve differences. “The APC unequivocally rejects the announced results… given the glaring irregularities and violations of established electoral procedures,” it said.
For Liberia’s immediate future, these elections have shown that voters have sent a clear message to the political establishment, that the path of the corrupt and ungovernable will feel their wrath, if they fail to steer toward a path of accountability and transparency.
The APC went on to issue a series of demands, including the resignation of the electoral commissioners, accusing them of “bias and failure to conduct their duties impartially”. The party also called for an election rerun within six months, saying the vote must be “overseen by credible individuals and institutions who will ensure a fair and transparent process”. It demanded the resignation of several officials and called on “international partners to impose travel bans on a dozen leading figures in power, including the President”. The APC also called the Bio government a “dictatorship” that is “usurping power”.
In February, Nigeria’s two major opposition – People’s Democratic Party and the Labor Party called for the presidential election to be canceled and rerun, saying that it had been compromised by vote rigging and widespread violence. The election in the most populous on the continent, with 220 million people — was the widest open in years, with a surprise third-party candidate putting up an assertive challenge. Bola Tinubu, the candidate of the governing All Progressives Congress Party was declared the winner.
In a departure from Nigeria and Sierra Leone, international observers including the European Union and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have hailed Liberia’s elections as remarkably close and well administered.
Democratic Transfer of Power
The conduct of these elections by the National Elections Commission under the leadership of President Weah underscores the rapidly growing maturity of Liberia’s post-war democratic sojourn.
When President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf transferred power to President Weah in January 2017, Liberia reached a critical milestone of progress, marking the first time since 1944 that the country had seen a peaceful transfer of power – the first in 73 years.
Liberia last peaceful transition of power from one president to another was 74 years prior to president Ellen Sirleaf transferring power to President George Weah. In 1944 President Edwin Barclay transferred power to William V. S. Tubman. In January 2024, when former vice president Boakai takes the oath of office, it will mark the third time a ruling party transfer power to an opposition. The first was when President E. J. Roye defeated Boston Jenkins Drayton, the candidate of the Republican Party, which was the first ruling party and the second was when President Weah took over from Sirleaf’s Unity Party.
What President Weah’s concession speech has done is illustrate a poise rarely seen in Africa, a sudden display of the strength in Africa’s oldest republic.
Following the footsteps of President Sirleaf, President Weah’s decision to embrace an unusual gesture will most likely ensure that Africa’s oldest republic, no longer see one party dominance for long stretches of time; while gunning for the record books and hoping to re-establish a political hegemony; a beginning that will ensure that the country will no longer be witness to yet another person coming to terms with the sweet taste of power and allowing himself to go astray.
The President’s concession in a nation that has lost a lot of good people, seen infrastructures ruined – while still paying for the mistakes of leaders and rulers, under the guise of self-entitlement to power, the dawn of a new era may be on the horizon, depending how the Boakai Presidency pans out.
For Liberia’s immediate future, these elections have shown that voters have sent a clear message to the political establishment, that the path of the corrupt and ungovernable will feel their wrath, if they fail to steer toward a path of accountability and transparency.
