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| Africa Subsaharan |
| Madagascar goes to the polls to pick president |
| 2018-11-09 |
| [DAWN] ANTANANARIVO: Madagascar went to the polls on Wednesday to elect a new president, with a packed field of candidates led by three former heads of state pitching their ideas for ending a political crisis and boosting the economy. Attempts by the most recent president, Hery Rajaonarimampianina, to change the Indian Ocean island’s electoral laws this year backfired, sparking nearly three months of sometimes violent protests in the capital Antananarivo. The demonstrators forced Rajaonarimampianina to accept a "consensus" government tasked with organising the election in an impoverished country burdened by a long history of coups and unrest. In addition to the three front-runners, the field includes two ex-prime ministers, pastors and a rock star. Short queues formed at several polling stations in the capital, where the interior ministry estimated turnout was around 40 per cent by midday. In Toliara, the third city in the country’s southwest, turnout had reached 68 per cent, according to the ministry, which added that voting was proceeding without incident. |
| Posted by:Fred |