By our Staff Writer
The first set of provisional results from Tuesday’s presidential elections puts the main opposition Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) of former Liberian football star, George Weah in an early lead.
According to the progressive results released on Thursday by the National Elections Commission (NEC), CDC has taken early leads in most of Liberia’s 15 counties, while incumbent Vice President Joseph Boakai leads in his hometown in Lofa County and opposition Liberty Party’s Charles Brumskine is leading in Grand Bassa and Rivercess counties.
NEC Chairman Jerome Korkoya told a news conference at the commission’s headquarters in Monrovia that the first results released reflect various percentages of voting precincts that have reported so far. In some areas, up to 48% of the precincts have reported to the national tally center in the capital, Monrovia.
Weah’s CDC leads the ruling Unity Party in the Bomi County hometown of outgoing President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf with 44.4.1% of the number of votes tallied so far, followed by UP with 33.1% and in nearby Gbarpolu CDC-41.6%, UP 37.4%. CDC also leads in the hometown of former President Samuel K. Doe’s Grand Gedeh CDC 76.1%-UP 12.05 and the rest of the southeastern counties of Maryland, River Gee and Sinoe. In Bong County, CDC has accumulated 39.4% of the votes so far, while the UP has 34%.
The party of the footballer-turned politician is also leading in the rest of the counties in southeastern Liberia: Grand Kru- CDC58.2%-UP-10.8%, with Liberty Party and ANC following with 6.8% and 5% respectively.
In Margibi County, hometown of Boakai’s running mate, current House Speaker Emmanuel Nuquay, CDC is currently in the lead with 42.8%-UP-34.6%, while ANC and LP follow with 6.8% and 5%.
For Montserrado County where the capital, Monrovia is CDC-50.4%-UP 26% with ANC and LP is netting 9.6% and 7.2%. In Maryland, the home town of ANC’s Alexander Cummings, CDC-36.2%-UP-15% followed by ANC with 31.5%; River Gee CDC-60.7%-UP-15.9%; Sinoe CDC-69.3%-UP13.1%.
The ruling Unity Party (UP) of Vice President Joseph Boakai is so far only leading in his hometown of Lofa County where the first results are UP-78.1%-CDC 5.8% followed by LP taking 8.8% of the votes.
In Grand Bassa county, hometown of LP’s Charles Brumskine LP-48.4%-CDC-32.5%, while the ruling UP is at a distance third place with 8.3%. In neigbouring Rivercess County, which was once party of Grand Bassa, LP-37.3%-CDC36.1% with the ruling UP coming at the tail with 13.71%.
The first provisional results released by NEC on Thursday also shows a strong lead by former Liberian warlord and now Senator Prince Johnson’s Movement for Democracy and Reconstruction (MDR) in his Nimba County hometown. The MDR has so far got 52.6%, while the UP has netted 18% of the number of votes counted and tallied so far.
NEC will release more results over the next days as the tallying of votes continues across Liberia, which has some 2.1 million registered voters, with 2080 precincts and 5,390 polling places.