Comoros Assoumani Retained as President

By Xinhua 

January 17, 2024

File photo, taken on Jan. 12, 2024, shows incumbent President of the Comoros Azali Assoumani giving a speech in a pre-election rally in Moroni, capital of Comoros. (Xinhua/Wang Guansen)

Incumbent President of the Comoros Azali Assoumani has won the presidential election by garnering over 60 percent of the votes, according to preliminary results released Tuesday by the country’s Independent National Electoral Commission.

At a press conference, the commission announced that Assoumani secured a total of 33,209 votes, which constitutes 62.97 percent of the total votes and Salim Issa Abdallah from the Juwa party was the runner-up, garnering 20.26 percent of the votes.

Despite the election turnout being a mere 16.3 percent, the commission commended the voters in a press release, stating that they fulfilled their duty in a calm and serene atmosphere. It also expressed appreciation for the mobilization of all those involved in the electoral process.

The Comoros kicked off its first round of the presidential election on Sunday to select the national leader from among six candidates, including Assoumani, for the next five years. Registered voters from the total population of roughly 900,000 cast their ballots at 868 polling stations across the country.