Rwanda : Paul Kagame Re-elected President

Paul Kagame has been re-elected President for a fourth consecutive term. The incumbent, has according to the partial results announced by the President of the Electoral Commission,    Oda Gasinzigwa, scored 99.15% of the vote, with about 79% of ballots counted. The candidate of the Green Democratic Party of Rwanda, Frank Habineza, obtained 0.53%, independent candidate Philippe Mpayimana obtained 0.32%. Minutes after the release of the partial results, Mr Kagame thanked Rwandans for their trust in an address at his Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) party headquarters. “These are not just figures, even if it was 100%, these are not just numbers…They show the trust, and that is what is most important,” Mr Kagame said.
The electoral commission says 98% of the more than 9.5 million eligible voters took part in the general elections that also saw the voting of 53 legislators. The apparent interest in the vote was all the more surprising, given that it was effectively a re-run of a non-contest in 2017, when Kagame won 98.79% of the vote. The same two opposition candidates as in 2017, were allowed to compete, while the candidacy of five others who applied were rejected.
Mr Kagame has been the de-facto leader of Rwanda since the end of the 1994 genocide and President since 2000. He is seen in turn as an autocrat who swiftly silences any criticism but also as a strong leader who brought the country back to stability after the devastating genocide of 1994. Some 800,000 people, mostly ethnic Tutsis, died in a period of ...