The Third Time's the Charm?
President of the Independent Electoral Commission in Cote d'Ivoire, Ibrahime Coulibaly-Kuibiert, declared, "President of the Republic Mr Alassane Ouattara is therefore elected."
As of Tuesday morning following results proclaimed by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) on Monday night, Cote d’Ivoire has announced that current President Alassane Ouattara at 78 years of age has been re-elected for a controversial third term in office after garnering 94.27% of the vote in the first round at a participation rate of 53.90%. as the main opposition camps — who still perceive Ouattara’s candidacy as a constitutional coup d’etat, chose to boycott the election in civil disobedience.
Opponents Standing Strong
The opposition camps did not recognise the preliminary results of the election as they called on Monday for the formation of a civil transition to hold what they believe will be fair and transparent elections.
Mounting Political Tensions
The political atmosphere in the country has already been tense and volatile and over 30 people have already lost their lives in election-related campaign violence.
Following this presidential pronouncement, many Ivorians fear a repeat of the post-electoral crisis of 2010 which resulted in the deaths of around 3,000 people.
