-Weah secures 9 of the 15 counties, as NEC exhausts tallying in Lofa and Gbarpolu
By Jerromie S. Walters
Since the commencement of the pronouncement of preliminary results of the recently ended October 10, 2023, general elections- arguments about strongholds have frequently been flagged by political pundits, as they see it as an apt means of easily securing the presidency.
Interestingly- it has helped few of the presidential candidates, especially the incumbent George Weah and the former Vice President Joseph Nyuma Boakai. Like with the case of Lofa and Nimba, these two counties along with few others have consistently and significantly heightened the figures of the opposition candidate.
Unfortunately, the counting process of the total number of polling places in Lofa County which happens to be the fifth vote-rich county (177, 129 registered voters) of the fifteen counties has been exhausted. NEC Boss confirmed Sunday, October 15, 2023, that 424 of the total of 424 polling places have all been counted.
Though Weah leads Boakai 598,558, representing 43.80% to 589,977, constituting 43.54% of the total number of votes counted so far, Boakai still has few of his strongholds and counties he has shown strength in like – Nimba, Margibi, Bomi and Grand Cape Mount counties.
Like Lofa, Gbarpolu where Boakai has proven a little strength has also been counted one hundred percent.
Fortunately for the incumbent President George Weah, he still has a significant portion of his strongholds like- Montserrado (Holds the highest number of registered voters -901, 162-), Bong, Grand Bassa, Maryland, Grand Gedeh, Sinoe, Grand Kru, River Cess, and River Gee. However, opposition figures have argued that counties of the southeast lack the numerical potential to guarantee the incumbent’s reelection.
Contrary to what Liberians saw during the first four days of the pronouncement of the results, President Weah Sunday, October 15, 2023, surpassed the votes of the former Vice President in Bong. With this, the incumbent can now hope on nine of the fifteen counties.
Day five of the pronouncement of preliminary results of the October 10, 2023 polls showed President Weah maintaining the lead with 598,558, (43.80%) votes. He’s a little bit ahead of the former Vice President who has 589,977 (43.54%) votes, and 18 other contenders. Sunday’s results by the National Elections Commission (NEC) bring the Commission to about 73 percent towards the final results of the October 10, 2023, general elections.
In Bomi at 109 of a total of 171 (63.74%) polling places- UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai secures 15791 (51.42%) votes while CDC George Weah obtains 11810 (38.45%).
In Bong county, at 470 of a total of 555 (84.68%)polling places- CDC George Weah accumulates 66, 358 (44.17) while UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai secures 58, 265 (3878%) votes.
In Grand Bassa- at 266 of the total of 405 polling places, CDC George Weah secures 31.50 (43.80%) votes- while UP Joseph Nyuma has about 25040 (35.32) votes.
In Grand Cape Mount County, at 102 of the total of 213 polling places, UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai secures 13, 719 (45.56%) votes while CDC George Weah has a total of 12, 504 (41.53%) votes.
In Grand Gedeh- at 132 of the total of 163 (80.98) polling places, CDC George Weah has accumulates 27, 752 (78.19%) votes while UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai has about 3, 728 (10.50) votes.
In Grand Kru County- at 77 of the total of 110 (70.00%) polling places, CDC George Weah secures 17, 200 (79.82%) votes, while UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai has about 1, 373 (7.76) votes.
In Lofa County, at 424 of the total of 424 (100%) polling places, UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai secures 72, 761 (56.16%) votes, while CDC George Weah has a total of 35, 951 (27.37%) votes.
In Margibi County- at 113 of a total of 441 (25.62%) polling places, UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai accumulates 17, 502 (503.6%) votes, while CDC secures 13, 758 (3959%) votes.
In Maryland County- at 94 of the total of 175 (53.71%) polling places, CDC George Weah secures 21, 339 (73.18%) votes, while UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai has a total of 3, 782 (12.97%) votes.
In Nimba County, at 535 of a total of 736 polling places- UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai has a total of 96, 582 (57.88%) votes, while CDC George Weah secures 35, 474 (21.26%) votes.
In River Cess County- at 83 of the total of 105 (79.05%) polling places, CDC George Weah secures 12, 113 (58.53%) votes, while UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai has about 5, 287 (25.54%) votes.
In Sinoe County, at 52 of a total of 152 (34.21%) polling places, CDC George Weah accumulates 11. 239 (78.24%) votes, while UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai secures 1, 572 (10.94%) votes.
In River Gee County, at 96 of a total of 98 (97.96%) polling places, CDC George Weah secures 19, 130 (70.27%) votes- while UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai accumulates
4, 417 (16.22%) votes.
In Montserrado County- at 1, 608 of the total of 2008 (80.08%) polling places, CDC George Weah obtains 262, 633 (47.39%) votes, while UP Joseph Nyuma Boakai secures 250, 155 (45.50%) votes.
The National Elections Commission (NEC) reported a total vote cast of 1,436,050, with a total invalid vote of 80,910. A total of 1,355,140 votes constituting 100% was recorded representing vote counts for each political party contesting Tuesday’s polls.
