Monrovia — With 97 percent of all ballots counted, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is set to become the first woman to win a nationwide presidential election in Africa.
"This is over and I hope our people will realize and join forces with Ellen to move the country forward," said a close advisor to Sirleaf's opponent, George Weah. The advisor, who is also a member of the executive committee of Weah's Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) and who spoke on condition of anonymity, said "the process is irreversible [and] we must not jeopardize the gains we made in the past two years."
Sirleaf, sensing victory, on Thursday thanked Liberians for turning out to vote for her and her party and said the needs and concerns of war-affected youths and children in general will be a priority for her first 100 days in office. Job creation, living wages, education and "giving young people skills to be productive and independent will receive my personal attention," she said.
Sirleaf, who trailed Weah in the voting on the first round October 11 when 22 candidates were on the presidential ballot, said the turn in her favor in the run-off occurred because Liberians "decided to go for experience and competence, and they have decided to trust me with their future."
On Friday, with 97 percent of the ballots counted, the Liberia Elections Commission reported Sirleaf with 59 percent of the votes compared with 41 percent for her opponent.
Weah, a former international soccer sensation who is making his first run for political office, has alleged that election process was riddled with irregularities and has asked the country's Supreme Court to intervene. Weah supporters protested on Friday outside the election commission headquarters in the capital.
With all ballots from the major counties counted, the results gave Sirleaf an overwhelming margin, offsetting gains Weah made in Grand Geddeh and other smaller southeastern counties. Sirleaf's margin of victory in Nimba was greater than the total votes of Grand Geddeh, River Gee, Sinoe and Grand Kru combined.
"Liberians have exhibited a rare level of maturity in the rounds of elections, and it would be rather unfortunate if personal narrow interests were to create a setback," said one Parliamentarian who is a member of the observer team from the African Union. Various international observers have welcomed the transparency of the electoral process, saying there may have been a few transgressions but nothing sufficient to discredit the process.
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With 97 percent of all ballots counted, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is set to become the first woman to win a nationwide presidential election in Africa.
