Ivory Coast President Seeks Third Term In Tense Vote
By AFP
Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara seeks reelection in a presidential vote Saturday marked by an opposition boycott and clashes over his bid to secure a contested third term.
A former IMF official in power since 2010, Ouattara is facing off with veteran opposition leader Henri Konan Bedie in a feud among the country’s ageing leaders that has defined Ivorian politics for decades.
Ouattara’s decision to run sparked tensions with Bedie and another opposition candidate, Pascal Affi N’Guessan, who called for a boycott of the vote on the grounds a third mandate was unconstitutional.
The ballot in French-speaking West Africa’s economic powerhouse is a crunch test in a region where Nigeria faces widespread social protests, Mali is emerging from a coup and jihadist violence wracks the Sahel.
Polling stations opened at 8:00 am (0700 GMT). It was unclear when results will be released. Electoral law allows for five days for results to be made official.
“The process has been tense,” said Patrick Allou, 32, waiting to vote in Abidjan’s Plateau district.
“Everyone has their opinion but you should express it democratically. No one needs to die in an election.”
Ouattara, 78, was supposed to step aside after his second term to make way for a younger generation, but the sudden death of his chosen successor forced a change in plan.