Chad’s interim military President, Mahamat Idriss Deby, has emerged victorious in the presidential election held on May 6, securing over 61% of the votes, according to provisional results announced by the state election body on Thursday, as reported by Reuters.
However, his main challenger has declared himself the winner, disputing the official results.
Despite some opposition parties alleging rigging, Chadians turned out to vote on Monday, three years after their military leader took power.
Tensions rose as security forces were heavily deployed at major intersections in the capital, N’Djamena, in anticipation of the election results.
According to Ahmed Bartichet, the chief of the National Election Management Agency, Mahamat Idriss Deby secured 61.3% of the vote, comfortably surpassing the 50% threshold required to avoid a run-off.
His main rival, Prime Minister Succes Masra, garnered 18.53% of the votes.
Prior to the official announcement, Masra declared himself the winner in a live broadcast on Facebook. He urged security forces and his supporters to resist what he termed as an attempt to manipulate the election results.
Masra stated, “A few individuals believe they can deceive the people by claiming that the election was won by the same system that has governed Chad for decades.”
Addressing his supporters, Masra called for calm and peaceful mobilization, saying, “To all Chadians who voted for change, who voted for me, I say: mobilize. Do it calmly, with a spirit of peace.”
