LIBERIA ELECTIONS: WEAH CONCEDES DEFEAT TO BOAKAI
WEAH CONCEDES DEFEAT TO BOAKAI 
Liberia President George Weah on Friday conceded election defeat to opposition leader Joseph Boakai after a tight race, ending a presidency marred by graft allegations but helping to ensure a smooth transition of power in the once volatile African nation.
Boakai,
78, a former vice president who lost to Weah in the 2017 election, led with
50.9% of the vote over Weah's 49.1%, with nearly all the votes counted, the
country's elections commission said on Friday.
In
an address to the nation he said "the Liberian people have spoken and we
have heard their voice".
The
opposition candidate holds an unassailable lead of 28,000 votes with nearly all
ballots counted.
The
former football star, President Weah has been in power since 2018. He will step
down in January.
He
came into the job on a wave of enthusiasm, especially from younger voters,
having won that election - also against Mr Boakai - by a large margin.
But
a perception that he had failed to tackle corruption, rising prices and
continued economic difficulties tarnished his image.
Mr
Weah was magnanimous in defeat, beginning his five-minute address by saying he
had "the utmost respect for the democratic process that has defined our
nation", adding that he had spoken to Mr Boakai who he called the
"president-elect".
Earlier
the electoral commission announced that Mr Boakai, a 78-year-old political
veteran had 50.89% of the votes, while President Weah had 49.11%.
The
president referred to the closeness of the race saying it "reveals a deep
division within our country" and called on Liberians to "work
together to find common ground... unity is paramount for mama Liberia".
Liberia
is struggling to recover from two civil wars that killed more than 250,000
people between 1989 and 2003, and from a 2013-16 Ebola epidemic that killed
thousands.
Boakai's
supporters gathered at his party's headquarters in the city, convinced that he
had won the election.
The
soft spoken career politician, emerged neck-and-neck with Weah in the first
round of voting in October but below the 50% needed to secure an outright
victory, leading to Tuesday's run-off.
The
electoral commission says it has announced the results from 99.58% of the
polling stations following the run-off election.
The
result marks a stark turnaround from 2017, when global soccer legend Weah,
buoyed by a wave of hope, trounced Boakai with 62 percent of the vote. Many
have since grown disillusioned with the lack of progress: Poverty,
unemployment, food insecurity and poor electricity supply persist.
Weah's
concession paves the way for Liberia's second democratic transfer of power in
over seven decades - the first was when Weah swept to power six years ago.
This
is remarkable especially in West and Central Africa where there have been eight
military coups in three years, and a scourge of sit-tight leaders.
Liberians are jubilant and expectant of a positive change when the new President take over power in few months.
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