MONROVIA: A senior United States diplomat has hailed the National Elections Commission for the credible, transparent and honorable manner it conducted the 2023 elections, including the November 14 runoff.
In a statement issued yesterday, Chargé d’Affaires of the US Embassy near Monrovia, Catherine Rodriguez, said the NEC’s performance is even more remarkable and deserves special commendation because the 2023 elections were the first conducted since the end of the Liberian civil war without any direct financial support from the international community.
Liberians should be proud of themselves for peacefully turning out to vote, the US envoy said. “They should also be proud of the NEC for meeting the challenge and independently executing its mandate to administer an election process that accurately reflects the will of the people.”
The statement further asserted: “The National Elections Commission announced final results of the November 14 presidential runoff on November 20, 2023. We congratulate President-elect Joseph Boakai on his election. Additionally, we commend President George Weah for gracefully accepting the election results. We urge all Liberians to join President Weah and accept the results peacefully.”
According to Madam Rodriguez the runoff and the October 10 general elections were a success, further consolidating Liberia’s post-civil war democratic gains, and cementing its position as a beacon of democratic self-governance in Africa.
“Reports by independent international and domestic observers deployed across nearly every polling place in the country attest to the success of the elections,” she said. “They have all praised the overall transparency and credibility of the election process.”
“Many people and institutions deserve credit for this historic achievement by Liberia. They include ordinary Liberians who stood patiently and peacefully in lines across the country to vote for their national leaders. They also include the various candidates, political parties, civil society, and media organizations who played an important role in ensuring a peaceful election process.”
She tendered special congratulations to the NEC for independently organizing the elections under intense pressure and facing daunting challenges.
She recalled that NEC workers braved difficult roads and traveled long distances to make sure voting materials were available at all 5,890 polling places across Liberia in time for voters to cast their ballots.
“They spent long hours counting ballots, and calmly resolved sometimes heated disputes at tallying centers, patiently explaining the process to party representatives,” the US diplomat further noted.
She praised the daily press conferences held by the NEC Commissioners, describing them a model of transparency.
“Commissioners provided timely election results to the public and forthrightly responded to questions from the media. They took quick action to address legitimate complaints about the integrity of the elections, ordering re-votes and recounts when necessary.”
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