MONROVIA: Liberian President, George Weah, has accepted defeat to opposition party candidate Joseph Boakai following a tight run-off election in the country, Western media reported on Saturday.
Weah called Joseph Boakai following the country’s National Elections Commission announced provisional results of the election. As per the results, Boakai won 51% of the votes. In an address to the nation, President Weah stated: “The results announced, though not final, show that Joseph N. Boakai is in a lead that our party cannot surpass. Therefore, I spoke with Joseph N. Boakai to congratulate him on his win.”
Liberian President Admits Defeat Following Provisional Results
“As we admit the results of election, let us also recognize that the true winners of these polls are the people of our country,” he maintained. The outgoing President Weah was elected in 2018 and will leave the office in January.
A run-off was prompted when President Weah secured a win in an earlier October election with a margin of just 7,000 votes over Boakai. However, Weah fell short of the mandatory 50% threshold essential to clinch an absolute victory.
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The outgoing President has been lauded for immediately conceding ensuring, a peaceful transfer of power – an important milestone in Liberia’s weak democracy, which has seen civil war and several leaders killed in office.
Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu was among the first to extend congratulation to the new President-elect while also lauding Weah’s “sterling example, pure patriotism, and statesmanship.
