Ernest Bai Koroma re-elected as Sierra Leone's President

Sierra Leone's National Electoral Commission (NEC) announced late Friday that Ernest Bai Koroma has been re-elected as Sierra Leone's President for a second term. The flagbearer of ruling All People's Congress Ernest Bai Koroma received 58.7 percent of vote cast, while his main challenger Julius Maada Bio from Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) got 37.4 percent. According to Sierra Leone's Constitution (1991), if presidential candidate wins 55 percent of the vote, a run-off will not be needed. The NEC also announced that the turnout rate in the Nov. 17 elections was 87.3 percent and 4.7 percent of the votes were invalid. It will be Koroma's second and final term in office. Parliamentary and local council election results are yet to be declared. Ernest Bai Koroma was elected President in 2007. He also contested in the 2002 presidential elections, and served as the leader of the parliamentary opposition from 2002 to 2007. President Koroma's campaign is based on the theme of "Transformation for National Prosperity," which promises to revamp the country's mining sector to enhance the economic and social wellbeing of the people. The general election is the first free vote that Sierra Leone is organizing itself. The previous two elections were organized by the UN.