Sierra Leone’s president seeks another term as opponents complain about the economy and unemployment
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AP) — Voters in Sierra Leone were deciding Saturday whether to give President Julius Maada Bio a second term in office amid high unemployment and growing concern about the state of the economy in the West African nation.
Bio faced a field of a dozen challengers though experts have predicted it’s likely his main competition will be Samura Kamara, the head of the All People’s Congress Party, whom he defeated in 2018.
To avoid a runoff, the winner must secure 55% of the vote. In the previous election, Bio beat Kamara in the runoff by a margin of less than five percentage points.
Bio has been facing increasing criticism because of debilitating economic conditions, which his opponent is pledging to fix. Nearly 60% of Sierra Leone’s population of more than 7 million are facing poverty, with youth unemployment being one of the highest in West Africa.
Multiple deadly anti-government protests have rocked the country during Bio’s term, with calls for him to step down. Fueled by a rise in cost of living, the latest one last August, left dozens dead, including security forces.
“We expect that when the results are out everything will be peaceful and as young people we will be able to see changes in our country,” said voter Fatmata Kamara.
A former military head of state, Bio came to power promising to end rampant corruption. Analysts say that he invested in improving education in the country and took steps to fight rampant corruption. But the weak economy has drawn criticism, with Sierra Leoneans taking to the streets protesting widespread poverty.
Bio’s opponent, Kamara, is a seasoned politician who has served in various government positions including as foreign minister.
Saturday’s vote is the country’s fifth presidential election since the end of a brutal 11-year civil war more than two decades ago.
Sierra Leone opposition supporters protest against electoral body
Police and protesters clashed on Wednesday when the supporters of the opposition party All People’s Congress (APC) who are accusing the electoral commission and its chairman Mohamed Konneh of alleged bias in favor of the ruling party.
The protesters are demanding the release of a more detailed voter register.
“We are here to protest because we want a credible election. All we are asking for, we don’t have problems with the government of the day. We just want a credible election. If the election is free and fair, definitely there will be no protest,” one protester
The protesters are demanding the release of a more detailed voter register.
“We are here to protest because we want a credible election. All we are asking for, we don’t have problems with the government of the day. We just want a credible election. If the election is free and fair, definitely there will be no protest,” one protester said.
“We have several issues we have raised to ECSL (Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone). They have not considered and adhered to the issues. We are in the majority. If Konneh knows he is not biased he should listen to the people of the country because we are in the majority,” another protester said.
Thirteen people are vying for the top job in the West African country. But experts say it’s likely to be a two-horse race between incumbent President Julius Maada Bio — elected in 2018 and fighting for his second term — and Samura Kamara, the head of the All People’s Congress Party, Sierra Leon’s main opposition camp.
The winner needs 55% of the vote to clinch victory in the first round or it goes into a runoff within two weeks.
More than three million people are registered to vote in the coming week. This would mark the country’s fifth presidential election since the end of a brutal 11-year civil war — more than two decades ago — which left tens of thousands dead and destroyed the country’s economy.
Sierra Leone had witnessed two peaceful transfers of power since, from the ruling party to the opposition party.
Sierra Leoneans vote in election with cost-of-living centre stage
By Cooper Inveen and Umaru Fofana
FREETOWN (Reuters) -Voting was underway in Sierra Leone on Saturday in a national election which the main opposition party hopes will see public frustration with deep economic hardship foil President Julius Maada Bio’s re-election bid.
About 3.4 million people are expected to vote in the presidential and legislative ballot after a campaign marred by tensions that led to the cancellation of rallies in the final stages and clashes at an opposition gathering on Wednesday.
Bio, 59, is running for a second term against 12 opponents. The race is expected to be close between the incumbent and Samura Kamara of the main opposition All People’s Congress (APC), who narrowly lost to Bio in the last election in 2018.
While no leader in office has lost the presidency in the West African nation’s recent history, the APC has banked on an enduring cost-of-living crisis tipping the balance in its favour. Inflation soared to its highest level in over 20 years in 2022, while the national Leone currency slumped 60% in value.
Hundreds waited in line at a polling station in a hilltop district of the capital Freetown, including first-time voter Abu Koroma, 23, who arrived in darkness two hours before polls opened.
Sierra Leone votes in national elections amid economic crisis
Voting is under way in tightly contested presidential and parliamentary elections amid a cost-of-living crisis.
Voting is under way in Sierra Leone’s tightly contested presidential and parliamentary elections amid a cost-of-living crisis.
Polling stations opened later than the scheduled time of 7am in the capital, Freetown, AFP journalists said on Saturday. They were due to close at 5pm (17:00 GMT).
Some 3.4 million people are registered to vote, 52.4 percent of whom are under 35 years old, according to an electoral commission spokesman.
Thirteen candidates are vying for the presidential post, including incumbent Julius Maada Bio, with a crippling economic crisis, which sparked deadly riots last year, on top of the poll agenda.
Presidential candidates must secure 55 percent of valid votes for a first-round win.
Incumbent Bio’s main challenger is Samura Kamara of the All People’s Congress (APC) party.
Bio, 59, of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), narrowly beat Kamara, who is aged 72, in a run-off in 2018.
Rising food prices
Rising food prices are a key issue for many voters in the import-dependent nation of eight million people.
Both Bio and Kamara told AFP they would prioritise boosting agricultural production.
Boubacar Conteh, 27, from Wellington in the east of Freetown, waited since four in the morning to cast his ballot.
“I want my country to change – I need change,” he said.
The deeply poor West African nation was battered by a brutal 1991-2002 civil war and the Ebola epidemic a decade later, and further pummelled economically by the COVID pandemic and fallout from the war in Ukraine.
Voters will also elect members of parliament and local councils in a proportional representation system after a last-minute switch from a first-past-the-post system.
Under a recently passed gender act, one-third of all candidates must be women.
A new 11.9 percent vote threshold will make it difficult for independents and minority parties to secure seats in the parliament.
Jobs and benefits are commonly perceived to flow to regions whose politicians are in power.
Bio, a former coup leader in the 1990s, has championed education and women’s rights in his first civilian term.
Kamara, a former foreign and finance minister, has lambasted the electoral commission for alleged bias in favour of the ruling party.
He is facing a protracted trial over allegations that he misappropriated public funds as foreign minister, a case he says is politically motivated.
A June 14 poll by the Institute for Governance Reform (IGR), a partner of the pan-African survey group Afrobarometer, forecasts Bio will win 56 percent of the vote, with 43 percent for Kamara.
Another poll, conducted by the newspaper Sierra Eye and two local data groups, forecasts 38 percent for the incumbent and 25 percent for his main challenger.
The elections are being closely followed in West Africa, a region recently dominated by coups and turmoil.
A group of foreign ambassadors on Wednesday issued a joint statement calling for peace following reports of election-related “aggression”.
Security forces clashed with APC supporters on Wednesday in the capital, Freetown.
Sierra Leoneans head to the polls in high-tension general election
Sierra Leoneans will vote Saturday in fiercely contested presidential and parliamentary elections, amid international calls for peace and a cost-of-living crisis that helped spark deadly riots last year.
The West African country, which never fully recovered economically from a 1991-2002 civil war and the Ebola epidemic a decade later, was further pummelled by the Covid pandemic and fallout from the war in Ukraine.
Twelve men and one woman are in the running for the top job, but incumbent President Julius Maada Bio‘s main challenger is Samura Kamara of the All People’s Congress (APC) party.
The two will face off for the second time in a row after Bio, of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP), narrowly beat Kamara in a runoff in 2018.
Rising food prices are a key issue for many voters in the import-dependent West African nation of eight million people.
Year-on-year inflation hit 43 percent in April, according to the latest official figures.
Both Bio and Kamara told AFP they would prioritise boosting agricultural production.
Regional allegiances
Some 3.4 million people are registered to vote, 52.4 percent of whom are under 35 years old, according to an electoral commission spokesman.
Polling opens at 7:00 am and closes at 5:00 pm (1700 GMT).
Presidential candidates must secure 55 percent of valid votes for a first-round win.
Turnout has ranged between 76 and 87 percent over the past three elections.
Voters will also elect members of parliament and local councils in a proportional representation system after a last-minute switch from a first-past-the-post system.
Under a recently passed gender act, one-third of all candidates must be women.
A new 11.9 percent vote threshold will make it difficult for independents and minority parties to secure seats in parliament.
Many Sierra Leoneans vote based on regional allegiances.
The majority of people in the south and east normally vote for the ruling SLPP. The majority of people from the north and west normally vote for the opposition APC.
Jobs and benefits are commonly perceived to flow to regions whose politicians are in power.
Bio, 59, a former coup leader in the 1990s, has championed education and women’s rights in his first civilian term.
Kamara, 72, a former foreign and finance minister, has lambasted the electoral commission for alleged bias in favour of the ruling party.
He is facing a protracted trial over allegations that he misappropriated public funds as foreign minister, a case he says is politically motivated.
Call for peaceful polling
A June 14 poll by Institute for Governance Reform (IGR), a partner of the pan-African survey group Afrobarometer, forecasts Bio will win 56 percent of the vote, with 43 percent for Kamara.
Another poll, conducted by the newspaper Sierra Eye and two local data groups, forecasts 38 percent for the incumbent and 25 percent for his main challenger.
Both candidates on Thursday evening encouraged their supporters to vote peacefully and responsibly.
The elections are being closely followed in West Africa, a region recently dominated by coups and turmoil.
A group of foreign ambassadors on Wednesday issued a joint statement calling for peace following reports of election-related “aggression”.
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Security forces clashed with APC supporters Wednesday in the capital Freetown.
Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders have called on authorities to protect freedom of expression and press freedom during the election.
Last August, riots left at least 27 civilians and six police officers dead.
Online disinformation campaigns have contributed to the violence.
(AFP)
Sierra Leone election: Tense poll amid fears of violence
Sierra Leoneans are voting in a general election following a tense campaign marred by violence.
On Wednesday, the main opposition party alleged that one of its supporters was shot dead by police, which the police have denied.
Supporters of both main parties have been accused of attacking opponents.
This election is taking place against the background of a troubled economy, the rising cost of living, as well as concerns about national unity.
The voters are choosing a president, MPs and councillors in the West African country’s fifth election since the civil war ended in 2002.
The 11-year conflict cost an estimated 50,000 lives, but since then the country has a tradition of largely peaceful, free and credible elections, according to Marcella Samba Sesay, chairperson of the NGO National Elections Watch.
With strong party loyalty among the 3.3 million registered voters, the campaigns have focused on shoring up their parties’ bases rather than articulating and debating policy issues.
Who are the candidates?
President Julius Maada Bio, 59, of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) is running for a second five-year term. His main rival among the 12 challengers is Dr Samura Kamara, 72, of the All People’s Congress (APC).
This is a repeat of the race in 2018, which saw Mr Bio narrowly win following a second round run-off.
- LISTEN: Africa Daily podcast on Sierra Leone’s elections
- BASIC GUIDE: Find out more about Sierra Leone
How much violence has there been?
There has been an uptick in violence compared to five years ago, according to the West Africa Network for Peace-building Sierra Leone. It has counted 109 violent incidents since April.
This week, the APC said one person was killed by security forces as its supporters gathered for a protest at its headquarters in Freetown on Wednesday.
The police alleged the shots were fired from the direction of the APC building.
Dr Kamara has also said that his motorcade came under attack and there were reports that the APC office was set ablaze in the city of Bo last weekend.
The SLPP has said that it too has faced attacks in opposition strongholds.
President Bio has called for “peaceful elections” and “no violence”. The African Union has also expressed concerns over reported incidents of violence and intimidation in parts of the country.
Sierra Leoneans have been alarmed by campaigners’ rhetoric, the Reuters news agency reports.
“All I want is peace. I am scared by the high level of hatred I see being exhibited on social media by political extremists on both sides,” a student from Freetown who wanted to remain anonymous told Reuters.
What about women?
This election comes months after a landmark law which says women must make up 30% of all positions in both the public and private sector – including in parliament.
But analysis from Sierra Leone’s Institute for Government Reform (IGR) suggest the next parliament will fall short of this.
Parties have put forward lists of candidates running in each of the country’s districts to be elected on a proportional representation basis. But according to the IGR, not enough women are placed high enough on those lists to make sure the 30% threshold is crossed.
Out of the 13 candidates running for president only one is a woman – the little-known Iye Kakay.
How does the election work?
The APC has also expressed concerns about the transparency of the counting process and has cast doubt on the electoral commission’s ability to hold fair elections.
The commission has defended itself, saying measures have been put in place to ensure the credibility of the voting and counting process.
Results should be known within 48 hours of polls closing.
To be declared the winner of the presidential race, the leading candidate must secure 55% of the votes cast, otherwise a run-off will be held between the two candidates with the highest number of votes.
