Ivory Coast’s President Alassane Ouattara has won a fourth term with a commanding 89.77 per cent of the vote, the electoral commission announced Monday.
The election was marked by the absence of his two main rivals, former President Laurent Gbagbo and ex-Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam, who were barred from running.
Nearly nine million voters were eligible to cast ballots in the world’s leading cocoa producer, a country that has largely avoided the coups and jihadist attacks affecting much of West Africa.
Despite early predictions of Ouattara’s victory, tensions and deadly violence marred the pre-election period.
Early returns on Sunday had already shown Ouattara winning over 90 percent of the vote, with turnout nearly 100 per cent in his northern strongholds.
He also led in some traditionally pro-opposition southern areas, including parts of the economic hub Abidjan, although polling stations there were mostly empty.
Entrepreneur Jean-Louis Billon came second with 3.09 per cent, according to Ibrahime Kuibiert Coulibaly, president of the electoral commission, who reported a 50.10 per cent overall turnout comparable to the 2020 election, which Ouattara also won by a landslide amid an opposition boycott.
“The absence of the main rivals, coupled with their calls to boycott, led to significant voter demobilization,” said William Assanvo, a researcher at the Institute for Security Studies.
In Gagnoa, Gbagbo’s former stronghold, Ouattara secured 92 per cent of votes, but only 20 per cent of residents turned out.
The opposition has rejected the election results, denying Ouattara’s legitimacy and calling for new elections.
Political analyst Geoffroy Kouao noted that the turnout highlighted two realities: Ouattara’s supporters voted in large numbers, while backers of Gbagbo and Thiam largely stayed home.
Despite low participation in some regions, Billon still congratulated Ouattara.
Pre-election unrest claimed at least eight lives and left nearly two dozen injured.
Security measures, including a nighttime curfew and deployment of 44,000 forces, were implemented to maintain order.
Ouattara, first elected following the 2010-2011 post-election crisis with Gbagbo that left more than 3,000 dead, returns to office amid a country divided over the legitimacy of his fourth term.
Pro-Ouattara media praised the election as “calm,” while opposition outlets highlighted ongoing political divisions.
AFP
