Liberian Presidential Election Heads for Runoff as President Weah and Opponent Boakai Tie in Votes

Tightest Presidential Contest in Two Decades with Record Voter Turnout; Runoff Election Slated for November 14 Amid Accusations of Mismanagement and Bold Future Promises

In the Liberia presidential election, incumbent President George Weah and main opponent Joseph Boakai have each received just over 43% of the vote, leading to a runoff election scheduled for November 14.
This contest is the closest presidential race in Liberia since the end of its civil war roughly 20 years ago, with a record voter turnout of 78.86% among the 2.4 million registered voters.
Boakai, who served as Vice President under Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, campaigned under the slogan 'Rescue' and accused President Weah of poor leadership, specifically pointing to alleged mismanagement.
In response, President Weah, a former international soccer star, asked voters for more time to fulfill his promises of governmental and infrastructural reform, pledging to pave more roads if reelected.
Boakai's improved performance compared to the last election has been a surprise, as he lost to Weah in a 2017 runoff by a wide margin.