Liberia Presidential Election Heads for Run-Off

Liberia's electoral commission has announced a presidential election runoff scheduled for November after results indicated that neither of the two leading candidates, President George Weah and opposition leader Joseph Boakai, secured enough votes.

The tally, reflecting results from 100% of polling stations, revealed Weah with a slim lead of 43.83% of the vote, while Boakai garnered 43.44%. Commission chairperson Davidetta Browne Lansanah confirmed that the runoff will take place on November 14, with a record turnout of 78.86% among the approximately 2.4 million registered voters.

The election is considered a head-to-head contest between the incumbent President Weah and former Vice President Boakai.

This election is viewed as a test of Weah's popularity and performance, with challenges related to corruption and the need for economic, institutional, and infrastructural improvements. Liberia continues to recover from two civil wars that claimed over 250,000 lives from 1989 to 2003, as well as a 2013-2016 Ebola epidemic that resulted in numerous fatalities.

Boakai's campaign emphasized the necessity of rescuing Liberia from perceived mismanagement under Weah's leadership.