Mamady Doumbouya, the head of Guinea's junta, was elected president after securing 86.72% of the first-round vote, according to the country's election commission on Tuesday. The election occurred despite Doumbouya's earlier pledge not to run for office after seizing power in a 2021 coup.
Doumbouya, 41, ran against eight other candidates, but key opposition leaders were barred from participating and had called for a boycott of the vote held over the weekend. Their exclusion and boycott call raise questions about the legitimacy of the electoral process.
Doumbouya's decision to stand in the election marked a reversal of his promise to transition the mineral-rich West African nation back to civilian rule by the end of 2024. He initially took power after leading a coup that ousted Guinea's first freely elected president in 2021. Since then, critics have accused Doumbouya's regime of cracking down on civil liberties.
The election commission's announcement indicated that Doumbouya surpassed the threshold required to avoid a runoff vote. The boycott by opposition parties, however, casts a shadow over the mandate he now claims. The political climate remains tense as the country navigates this transition.
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