Sierra Leone re-elects Juluis Maada Bio; opponents accuse him of cheating

The incumbent president of Sierra Leone has declared victory in the 2023 election despite outcry and accusations of cheating from opponents. 

President Juluis Maada Bio, 59, claimed victory Wednesday after officials announced he received 56% of the national vote. 

According to the same figures, opponent Samura Kamara, 72, came in a distant second with 41%. 

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Kamara reported that his own camp was not allowed to witness or verify ballot counting and called the outcome “daylight robbery.” 

“My compatriots,” Kamara wrote in a statement following the results. “We have heard the unfortunate announcement of the elections results for the June 24 Presidential elections by the Chief Electoral Commissioner Mr Konneh. It is a sad day for our beloved country. It is a frontal attack on our fledgling democracy.” 

Kamara continued, “These results are NOT credible and I categorically reject the outcome so announced by the electoral commission.”

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International election watchdogs have also raised questions on the validity of the national election.

“We are not convinced that the integrity was maintained throughout the elections,” the U.S.-based Carter Center’s Cameron Hume told the BBC.

However, Hume acknowledged there was no hard evidence of fraud.

Bio, a former soldier, has been president of Sierra Leone since 2018. 

The nation is undergoing a period of economic difficulty and societal decline amid high crime, rampant violence, and fracturing politics.

In 2019, Bio declared rape a “national emergency” after hundreds of sexual assaults against women, young children and babies were reported every month.

Bio’s Sierra Leone People’s Party and Kamara’s All People’s Congress party have accused one another of violence and intimidation in the run-up to the election.