After much confusion, Liberian election officials have confirmed a November 7 date for the runoff election between presidential candidates George Weah and Joseph Boakai.

That’s according to the National Elections Commission (NEC), following the release of final vote tallies ahead of a deadline for next Wednesday. Weah, a former football star and Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) presidential candidate, finished with 38.4 percent of the vote, while Boakai of the ruling Unity Party has 28.8 percent of votes tallied. Liberty Party candidate Charles Brumskine has 9.6 percent of the vote, while no other candidate in the field of 20 hopefuls received more than 8.2 percent of the remaining votes cast.

The Liberian constitution requires a second-round runoff when no candidate achieves more than 50 percent, which makes for a Weah-Boakai matchup. Brumskine does not accept that, and said Monday that he wants a new election process because of “serious gross irregularities and fraud.” The Alternative National Congress (ANC) and All Liberian Party candidates also are challenging results.

Image: NEC Liberia/Korkoya