By Lincoln G. Peters<\/b><\/p>\n
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Africa-Press – Liberia. <\/strong><\/span>Incumbent President George Weah and his main rival former Vice President Joseph N. Boakai are said to be in a seesaw battle as the race to the Executive Mansion remains undecided.<\/p>\n On Sunday, October 15, Mr. Weah took a narrow lead over his opponent Mr. Boakai with just 0.26%. However, the narrative changed on Monday, October 16, when the Unity Party (UP) presidential candidate swung the narrow lead in his favor at 0.5%.<\/p>\n The battle has been solid from both ends, as the National Elections Commission (NEC) continues to release preliminary results. The two archrivals have been locked in a tight race for the presidential seat contested by a total of 20 candidates.<\/p>\n Reading the progressive tally report, NEC chairperson Davidetta Brown-Lansanah said Mr. Boakai, a former Liberian vice president, secured a total of 748,463 votes constituting 43.70% against Mr. Weah\u2019s 747,578 votes constituting 43.65%.<\/p>\n The NEC reported from 56467 polling places out of a total of 5890 polling places constituting 92.82%.<\/p>\n She said candidate Boakai obtained 748,463 votes constituting 43.70 %, while Mr. Weah of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) obtained 747,578 votes, constituting 43.65%.<\/p>\n Either of the two rivals needs 50 percent plus one of the votes cast to win the presidency. In 2017, Mr. Weah and Mr. Boakai battled in a presidential run-off and the former won the polls as an opposition candidate.<\/p>\n Weah, a former Liberian international soccer star overwhelmingly enjoyed the mass support of ordinary people in past elections when he was an opposition.<\/p>\n Young people and those who saw the educated class as the country\u2019s problems found political comfort in backing Weah\u2019s quest for the nation\u2019s highest seat.<\/p>\n But his six years in office have painted a completely different picture of the leader they thought he was.<\/p>\n While he still maintains a strong support base within his Coalition for Democratic Change, it seems the grassroots-level support is now divided.<\/p>\n In this year\u2019s polls, both Weah and Boakai have amassed support from the grassroots, and the incumbent did not have a smooth ride this time.<\/p>\n The NEC will continue to announce more preliminary results in the coming days. The outcomes will tell whether there can be a one-round victory or a run-off between the two archrivals.<\/p>\n For More News And Analysis About Liberia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Lincoln G. Peters Africa-Press – Liberia. Incumbent President George Weah and his main rival former Vice President Joseph N. Boakai are said to be in a seesaw battle as the race to the Executive Mansion remains undecided. On Sunday, October 15, Mr. Weah took a narrow lead over his opponent Mr. Boakai with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":45535,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[233,237,234],"class_list":["post-45537","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-liberia","tag-liberia"],"yoast_head":"\n