San José, Costa Rica | AFP | Seven candidates to become Costa Rica’s next president went behind bars to hold an unusual debate in a prison where they answered inmates’ questions about their election platforms. “I hope you feel at home,” one of the prisoners said as the seven politicians …
Read More »Kenya’s contentious electoral amendments pass into law
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | A controversial set of amendments to Kenya’s electoral act became law on Thursday, just days after a divisive presidential poll boycotted by the opposition. The amendments, condemned by the opposition as well as Kenya’s foreign allies, were automatically gazetted after President-elect Uhuru Kenyatta failed to …
Read More »Togo, Guinea leaders mediate deepening Liberia election dispute
Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | The presidents of Guinea and Togo held mediation talks Wednesday with all sides involved in Liberia’s disputed election, following a Supreme Court announcement it would summon the country’s electoral commission to explain alleged fraud and irregularities. Liberia’s top court has reviewed a legal complaint backed by …
Read More »Russians also used Instagram for US election disinformation
Washington, United States | AFP | The Russian-led effort to spread misinformation and sow discord ahead of the 2016 US election also used the social network Instagram, parent company Facebook acknowledged in Congress Wednesday. Facebook general counsel Colin Stretch told a hearing that Instagram posts by suspect Russian accounts were seen …
Read More »Liberia Supreme Court hearing threatens to delay election run-off
Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | Liberia’s Supreme Court said it will summon the country’s election commission on Thursday over a legal complaint backed by three political parties regarding the October 10 presidential election, potentially delaying a runoff vote. In a document released late Tuesday, the Supreme Court called on the …
Read More »Raila Odinga: Veteran Kenyan opposition leader digs in heels
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Raila Odinga, Kenya’s veteran opposition leader and one-time prime minister, on Tuesday promised a campaign of civil disobedience and protest against a presidential election he boycotted last week, keeping alive his long-held dream of winning the nation’s top job. The 72-year-old has been a mainstay of …
Read More »Kenya’s Odinga rejects ‘sham’ election, pledges to fight on
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Kenya’s opposition leader Raila Odinga on Tuesday rejected outright the result of last week’s “sham” election, vowing to fight on after the protest-hit poll that handed President Uhuru Kenyatta a landslide win. “This election must not stand. If allowed to stand, it will make a …
Read More »Uhuru Kenyatta: Re-elected, but at what cost?
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | Uhuru Kenyatta, who won a second and final term in Kenya’s controversial election re-run, is the son of the country’s founding president and a man who epitomises the country’s elite. The 56-year-old US-educated multi-millionaire, whose family owns an array of businesses, properties and land, followed in …
Read More »Kenyatta says election victory ‘revalidates’ will of the people
Nairobi, Kenya | AFP | President Uhuru Kenyatta on Monday said his victory in Kenya’s boycott-hit election re-run was a “revalidation” of the people’s will after a vote he won in August that was overturned by the courts. “On 8th August, 15 million Kenyans came out to vote. Of these, 8.4 …
Read More »Liberia ruling party backs challenge to election result
Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | Liberia’s ruling party on Sunday announced a formal complaint against the electoral commission over the outcome of the October 10 presidential poll, days before a runoff involving its candidate, Vice-President Joseph Boakai. The election was hailed as largely credible by domestic and international observers, despite recorded …
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