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Young supporters of Guinean opponent Cellou Dalien Diallo, who has declared himself the winner of the presidential election, clashed with police on Wednesday in the Wanindara district of the country's capital Conakry.
African election monitors said Tuesday that Guinea's weekend election was conducted properly, but the political opposition to incumbent Alpha Conde, which has already claimed victory, dismissed it as fraudulent.
Preliminary results for four of the country's 38 voting districts released by electoral commission chief Kabinet Cisse late Tuesday showed a strong lead for Conde over his main challenger Cellou Dalein Diallo, who had claimed victory Monday.
In three of the four districts, Conde secured more than the 50 percent needed to avoid a runoff vote, although an electoral commission official told AFP it was "impossible to extrapolate" to the final national result, expected later this week.
"Alpha Conde is doing everything possible to change ballot-box results in his favour" Diallo's campaign director Fode Oussou Fofana had earlier told reporters in the capital Conakry.
The opposition campaign has been setting the stage for an election dispute, with Fofana accusing the government of "large-scale fraud" in counting ballots from the hotly contested October 18 poll.
Conde, 82, is seeking a controversial third presidential term, a move that has triggered months of deadly unrest in the West African nation.
- Augustin Matata Ponyo, the African Union's head of mission in Guinea, said the ballot took place "in transparency" while the head of the West African ECOWAS monitoring mission said the vote was lawful.
Celebrations in Conakry of Diallo's self-proclaimed victory quickly descended into violent clashes with security forces, in which several youngsters were shot dead, opposition officials said.
Meanwhile in a seeming response to Diallo's self-proclaimed win, security forces dressed in riot gear surrounded his house in the capital. He tweeted that he was trapped inside.
- 'Irresponsible and dangerous' -
Security forces killed dozens of people in protests against a Conde third term, which began in October last year--.
Although polling day was mostly calm, Diallo's self-proclaimed election victory has ratched up tensions in the former French colony of some 13 million people.
The government insists the vote was fair and that only the official electoral authority can declare the results.
Conde's RPG party also called Diallo's move "irresponsible and dangerous" on Monday.
The international community is concerned too. The United Nations, African Union, and the 15-nation ECOWAS called the premature declaration of results "regrettable", in a joint statement on Monday.
"This state of affairs is not conducive to preserving calm," the statement said.
But on Tuesday, the communications director for Diallo's UFDG party, Ousmane Gaoual Diallo, said the party's own analysis of polling data collected from individual stations showed the opposition leader had won over 50 percent of the vote
Many people have been killed since clashes began on Monday. Scores too had been killed in the run up to the vote as protestors marched against Conde's bid for a third term.
But the meltdown was also a manifestation of a landmark Supreme Court case that gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights Act.
“Everything is happening at once right now,” said University of Georgia law professor Lori Ringhand, citing the pandemic, states like Georgia moving to new voting machines and years of legal wrangling over racial discrimination and election security.
Georgia Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikema Williams said the anxiety among many in her party is a reminder that a full-strength Voting Rights Act is needed, though she accepts that federal law won’t change before November.
Voting rights advocates sued there anyway under the remaining law’s general prohibition on discrimination, but a federal District Court ruled the overhauled precinct plan was allowable.
A federal appeals court ruled against the law, using Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
Foot Locker will “Rock the Vote” at its stores this election year. In a press release, Foot Locker announced a partnership with Rock the Vote to utilize Foot Locker retail…
The Georgia Democratic Party is asking a county judge to grant additional time to review absentee and provisional ballots from the state’s primary earlier this week following widespread election issues.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and the state House speaker have called for investigations into voting delays in Atlanta and across Georgia that lasted hours for voters looking to cast ballots during Tuesday’s primary.
The party is bringing suit against Raffensperger as well as members of the Georgia State election board, citing notification requirements that the party deemed “impossible for several county boards of election to comply with.”
“As county election officials have made clear, the volume of absentee ballots and provisional ballots cast and collected, combined with a shortage of poll workers justifiably fearful of exposure to the novel coronavirus, have overwhelmed election officials,” party officials wrote in court documents, noting that “tens of thousands of ballots have not been processed in several counties, let alone examined and verified or rejected within three days of the election, as required by” ballot regulations.
The party is asking a judge to require Raffensperger to direct by 9 p.m. ET Friday all county election superintendents to contact voters within one business day if their ballots are rejected, and to grant any Georgia voter whose ballot is rejected until next Friday, June 19, to submit information they think could factor into their ballot being accepted.
Over the past seven years, states and localities have reverted to discriminatory practices that restrict the voting rights of Black, Brown, Native, and Asian American people and have put up unnecessary roadblocks to the ballot.
On this anniversary, Tina Knowles-Lawson, Mothers of the Movement, and Black women celebrities urge the Senate to pass H.R. 6800, The HEROES Act, that includes $3.6 billion in funding for state administration of federal elections.
Tina Knowles-Lawson; Viola Davis; Whoopi Goldberg; Octavia Spencer; Jada Pinkett Smith; Beyoncé Knowles Carter; Solange Knowles; Gabrielle Union; Taraji P. Henson; Kelly Rowland; Lala Anthony; Halle Berry; Yvette Nicole Brown; Melina Matsoukas; Janelle Monáe; Bozoma Saint John; Holly Robinson Peete; Oge Egbuonu; Lena Waithe; Kerry Washington; Rashida Jones; Gwenn Carr, Mother of Eric Garner; Kadiatou Diallo, Mother of Amadou Diallo; Sybrina Fulton, Mother of Trayvon Martin; Maria Hamilton, Mother of Dontre Hamilton; Wanda Johnson, Mother of Oscar Grant;Rep. Lucy McBath, Mother of Jordan Davis Tamika Palmer, Mother of Breonna Taylor; and Geneva Reed-Veal, Mother of Sandra Bland.
Tina Knowles-Lawson, Viola Davis, Whoopi Goldberg, Octavia Spencer, Jada Pinkett Smith, Beyoncé Knowles Carter, Solange Knowles, Gabrielle Union, Taraji P. Henson, Kelly Rowland, Lala Anthony, Halle Berry, Yvette Nicole Brown, Melina Matsoukas, Janelle Monáe, Bozoma Saint John, Holly Robinson Peete, Oge Egbuonu, Lena Waithe, Kerry Washington, Rashida Jones, Gwenn Carr (Mother of Eric Garner), Kadiatou Diallo (Mother of Amadou Diallo), Sybrina Fulton (Mother of Trayvon Martin), Maria Hamilton (Mother of Dontre Hamilton), Wanda Johnson (Mother of Oscar Grant), Rep. Lucy McBath (Mother of Jordan Davis), Tamika Palmer (Mother of Breonna Taylor), Geneva Reed-Veal (Mother of Sandra Bland)
The Organization of American States (OAS) today repudiated the latest report by Chief Election Officer Keith Lowenfield fabricating a `win’ for the incumbent APNU+AFC and it warned that in the coming days a report will be issued to the body’s Permanent Council on this and other matters.
The article OAS slams Lowenfield over latest report to GECOM appeared first on Stabroek News.
Today, the Georgia Election Protection Coalition released a joint statement about the Georgia State Board of Elections’ rules amendments ahead of the August 11th runoff. The rules, which allow counties to set up 24/7 absentee ballot drop boxes for the runoff and give counties the ability to begin processing absentee ballots ahead of election day, will give more Georgians the Continue reading \"Georgia Voting Rights Activists: Expansion Of Absentee Voting Drop Boxes Is Important, But More Can Be Done\"
On Monday, May 4, The Transformative Justice Coalition (TJC) and the Voting Rights Alliance held a tele-townhall titled, “The Fight for the Vote 2020: Our March to the Ballot Box.”
Panelists included National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) President and CEO, Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., TJC Founder, and President Barbara R. Arnwine, Esq., Moms Rising CEO Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner, and Vote.org CEO Andrea Hailey.
The panelists tackled robust voter outreach and registration strategies, media, and specialized outreach to purged voters and those on inactive lists, creating voter contact systems, onerous absentee ballot requirements, and voter identification.
“We have to be concerned that while we sit here tonight, there are tactics, strategies, and efforts afloat in too many of these states to suppress the vote and to make people fearful of voting such was the case 50 years ago,” Chavis continued.
“Confusion itself can be a voter suppression tactic, so we’re trying to cut through all of that noise to make sure there’s no confusion,” Hailey noted.
As it turns out, Black voters are justified in our months-long surveyed skepticism of mail-in voting. Although the intentional slow down of the United States Postal Service is confirmation in […]
The post North Carolina Proves Black Voters Are Justified For Distrusting Mail-In Voting appeared first on Essence.
Kamala Harris kicks off virtual bus tour with focus on N.C. Virtual event commemorates inaugural National Black Voter Day
The post Kamala Harris kicks off virtual bus tour with focus on N.C. Virtual event commemorates inaugural National Black Voter Day appeared first on WS Chronicle.
Michelle Obama is getting out and encouraging people to vote in special Instagram series for the upcoming presidential election in November.
… That is because in the African-American family tradition, reunions frequently act … a disease that disproportionately affects Black Americans, has prevented many of them … but meaningful political implications, as Black Americans’ voting rights are increasingly …
GECOM Chair says yes to votes from 29 challenged ballot boxes -stage set for deliberations on certification
A deciding vote by GECOM Chair Claudette Singh yesterday saw the inclusion of votes from 29 ballot boxes that had been under question, virtually sealing an election victory for the PPP/C and setting the stage for certification of the final result.
As the curtains on the recount process for the March 2nd General and Regional Elections yesterday closed with the PPP/C with an insurmountable lead, the party assured supporters of the governing APNU+AFC that they had nothing to fear from its leadership as they will be a bastion of inclusivity.
The PPP/C and smaller contesting parties thanked GECOM for a credible recount process and said that they look forward to the completion of tabulation and a swift declaration of the winner.
Ninety-two ballot boxes from the March 2nd general elections were recounted today, according to GECOM Commissioner, Sase Gunraj.
There are now three days left in the original 25-day time frame and 957 boxes still to be counted.
GECOM is yet to extend the timeframe for the count or to add new work stations to the current 12.
Republicans, including White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, have downplayed the president's suggestion that the election be delayed.
Following Chief Election Officer Keith Lowenfield’s decision to disregard the request by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chairperson Claudette Singh to submit a report on the outcome of the general elections using the results of the national recount exercise, the Organization of American States (OAS) yesterday said his actions were unjustifiable.
The article Lowenfield not acting in interest of democracy appeared first on Stabroek News.
Lowenfield report says it cannot be ascertained that recount results meet criteria of fair, credible elections
Chief Election Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield today delivered his report to GECOM Chair Claudette Singh on the 33-day recount of votes and sources tell Stabroek News it says that in each district it cannot be ascertained that the results meet the criteria of free and fair elections.
The report contains the tabulations for the 10 electoral districts and a summary of the controversial observation reports that had been raised by APNU+AFC agents during the 33-day recount of votes from the March 2nd general elections.
Lowenfield’s first report to the GECOM Chair which has not been acted on had shown a win for APNU+AFC.
GECOM is already under pressure over the fact that its District Four Returning Officer tried to rig elections in favour of APNU+AFC.
Lowenfield’s report will be seen as giving succour to APNU+AFC’s fallback position which is that a verifiable election result is not possible and that the elections be annulled.
Violence rocked Guinea's capital Conakry on Friday as supporters of opposition leader Cellou Diallo clashed with security forces who tried to disperse them.
They threw stones and blocked roads. Police responded with teargas and bullets. The clashes erupted as soon as provisional results released by the electoral commission showed president Alpha Conde winning with a big margin.
Conde, 82, won twice as many votes as his nearest rival, opposition candidate Cellou Dalein Diallo, with 37 of 38 districts counted, according to preliminary results from the commission.
Opposition supporters accuse the electoral authorities of rigging the vote for incumbent president Alpha Conde.
Sekou Koundouno, head of mobilisation for the opposition coalition FNDC said Conde had committed 'high treason'.
\"He is an illegal and illegitimate candidate who is stubbornly pursuing his obsession to turn Guin ea into a monarchy in which, by the way, he will dictate orders to his subjects,\" said Kounduno.
Diallo maintains that he won with a landslide despite irregularities, according to his own tally. He remains barricaded in his home which security forces have besieged since Monday.
ICC warning
The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor warned on Friday that warring factions in Guinea could be prosecuted after fighting erupted.
“I wish to repeat this important reminder: anyone who commits, orders, incites, encourages and contributes in any other way to crimes … is liable to prosecution either by the Guinean courts or the ICC,” she said.
#ICC Prosecutor #FatouBensouda: "I wish to repeat this important reminder: anyone who commits, orders, incites, encourages or contributes, in any other way, to the commission of #RomeStatute crimes, is liable to prosecution either by #Guinean courts or by the #ICC."
— Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) October 23, 2020
President Trump is openly trying to starve the Postal Service of funding so as to disenfranchise Democratic voters. Meanwhile, his Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has implemented reforms that are slowing mail delivery.
