Madagascar: Andry Rajoelina set for third term after boycotted polls

Andry Rajoelina, the current leader of Madagascar, has virtually been granted a third term after the electoral commission (CENI) declared on Saturday that he had received the most votes in a boycotted and low turnout presidential election. Following the tabulation, Rajoelina received 58.9% of the vote, according to the preliminary figures released by CENI. A politician named Siteny Randrianasoloniaiko received 14.4% of the vote. Nine days after the election authority announces provisional results, the nation’s High Constitutional Court is required to pronounce the official results. Following the announcement of the results, 49-year-old entrepreneur and former DJ Rajoelina declared, “The Malagasy people have chosen the path of continuity, serenity and stability.” He said that irregularities in the poll, such as the ruling party’s use of public funds and intimidation of poll workers, had tainted the results; the party disputes the allegations. Opposition demonstrators fought police on multiple times in the build-up to the election, claiming Rajoelina shouldn’t have run because he obtained French nationality in 2014, which they claim automatically revokes his Malagasy identity, and because he had set up unfair election circumstances. Later, ten of the candidates scheduled to compete in the election on November 16 requested that it be postponed, citing the need for the state to nominate independent officials to the electoral board beforehand. They asked voters to abstain from the poll when CENI rejected their request. Only three candidates ran for office after that. (With agency inputs)