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Madagascar: Presidential election deemed fair by observers
Other commentators also judged the election free and urged the candidates to accept the outcome. Observers from the US-based Carter Center and the Johannesburg-based Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) found “that voting and counting processes were peaceful, orderly,” they said in a statement.
The elections’ organization was “relatively successful” despite several constraints, said EISA mission head Cassam Uteem, a former president of Mauritius. “All the members of our team have confirmed that everything happened transparently, and we don’t have any reason to believe that there has been rigging,” he said.
Turnout was low – less than half of the 7.9 million eligible voters, cast their ballots according to sources.
Mutual mud-slinging marked the long wait for the result. “We are calling for the result publication to be halted and want to check all the ballot boxes to see if there are any pre-marked ballot papers,” Jean Louis, 61, protege of ousted president Ravalomanana, told reporters.
Louis, claimed victory after his teams collected “80 percent of results all over Madagascar” that he said showed he won 65 percent of the vote. On Saturday he had claimed 56 percent.
His rival, former finance minister Rajaonarimampianina, claimed a similar result in his favor. The election commission, police and observers have so far confirmed no fraud allegations.
One observer experienced in elections in high-risk areas said of Louis’ claims of ballot fixing: “It’s a classic case that candidates who don’t get the score they hoped for claim fraud.”
Rajaonarimampianina, 55, a former finance minister under Rajoelina, led with 53.63 percent of votes against Jean Louis’s 46.37 precent, with 3,047 polling stations out of 20,001 reporting by the evening.
Friday’s presidential run-off after an inconclusive first round on October 25 coincided with a vote for 151 parliamentarians.
Source: AFP
