The President of the Central African Republic (CAR) Faustin-Archange Touadera is set to start a new term after the country’s Constitutional Court confirmed his victory at last month’s polls, despite pushback from opposition parties. 

While preliminary results announced by the country’s elections umpire on January 4, 2021, placed Touadera at the top of the disputed elections with 53.92 percent of all the votes, the final result announced by the Constitutional Court showed that Touadera won his mandate with 53.16 percent of the December 27th. vote. 

Touadera “is proclaimed to be re-elected president in the first round of December 27, 2020, elections”, Chief Judge Daniele Darlan said on Monday in The CAR. 

The opposition had, in January, urged the court to order a re-run of the elections, citing insecurity and alleged incidences of election fraud as factors that impeded the chances of a free and fair electoral process. 

While the court acknowledged the issue of low turnout where only 35.25 per cent of eligible voters came out to cast their votes, it also noted that this was as a result of insecurity, and as such, dismissed arguments that the vote lacked legitimacy.  

“Part of the Central African people, who are at war, were prevented by acts of terror… and despite this, the people sent a strong and clear message to those who were terrorizing them, to those who were telling them not to vote, and to the whole world,” Darlan said, reading from a statement.

Continued Violence In The CAR

The poll was held under threats from armed groups, which formed an alliance known as the Coalition of Patriots for Change. While the government has accused former president François Bozizé of instigating the unrest and an attempted coup, more rebels launched a coordinated attack at the northern and southern parts of the capital on January 13, 2021. The invasion was repelled by the CAR army supported by the force of the UN mission (MINUSCA).