Polling stations open in Burkina Faso for presidential, legislative elections

22 Novembre 2020

Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, November 22 (Infosplusgabon) - Polling stations opened Sunday at 6 a.m. in several localities throughout the country for the presidential and legislative elections.

"This Sunday, November 22, 2020, Burkinabe are called to the polls to elect the president of Burkina Faso for the five-year term 2021-2025, as well as their representatives in the National Assembly. This coupled ballot marks an important turning point for the consolidation of our democracy," outgoing President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré said.

"Together, we have chosen the ballot box as the only mode of devolution of power. To this end, I invite every Burkinabe to freely express his choice, and to fulfil his civic duty by going to vote," he added.

A total of 6,490,144 voters will go to the polls to elect the future president of Burkina Faso and the 127 members of parliament.

Burkinabè from abroad will participate for the first time in these elections in 22 countries with 23,108 voters including 18,904 in Africa, 1,061 in America, 332 in Asia, and 2,811 in Europe.

Thirteen candidates, including President Kaboré, are vying for the presidential election, while 96 parties, five political parties and 25 independent groups, making a total of 10,652 candidates, will compete for the 127 seats in the National Assembly.

Elections will not be held in 860 villages in 15 communes because of terrorist attacks.

Defence and security forces and more than 10,400 observers were deployed on the ground to ensure the smooth conduct of the elections.

The first results are expected on November 23, the day after the elections.

On Saturday, the opposition and the government accused each other of preparing to rig the elections.

During a press briefing, the leader of the opposition, Zéphirin Diabré, had appealed "verbally to the national and international community that it will never accept results tainted by irregularities".

"We refute the allegations of fraud announced by the opposition to prepare minds for the publication of the results," replied Simon Compaoré, president of the Movement of the People for Progress (MPP), the party of President Kaboré.

FIN/ INFOSPLUSGABON/AZS/GABON2020

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