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Burkina's Compaoré Wins by Landslide

   Anne Look | Dakar 26 November 2010
   A  man  casts his ballot during Burkina Faso elections at Ouagadougou,
   Burkina Faso, 21 Nov. 2010

Photo: AP

   A  man  casts his ballot during Burkina Faso elections at Ouagadougou,
   Burkina Faso, 21 Nov 2010

   Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaoré won a landslide victory in the
   country's   presidential   poll,   according  to  provisional  results
   announced  Thursday.  Four  opposition  candidates  are now contesting
   those   results  and  calling  for  the  president  of  the  electoral
   commission to resign.

   Burkina  Faso's  electoral  commission  announced  provisional results
   Thursday for the November 21 presidential poll.
   Electoral   commission   president,   Moussa   Michel   Tapsoba,  says
   provisional  results  show  Mr. Compaoré winning 80 percent of votes.
   Opposition   frontrunners,   Arba  Diallo  and  Bénéwendé  Sankara,
   followed with eight and six percent of votes respectively.
   Diallo  and  Sankara,  along with two other opposition candidates, say
   they are contesting provisional results, citing irregularities.
   On  Thursday, a judge upheld a complaint filed before the vote by four
   opposition candidates, who had argued that voter cards did not conform
   to  the  electoral  code  and were therefore invalid and could lead to
   fraud.  The  court ruled that some voter cards did not contain all the
   required information, specifically place of birth.
   Opposition leader, Sankara, had refused to vote last Sunday in protest
   of the fraudulent cards.
   Sankara  says  they  are  calling  for  the president of the electoral
   commission  to  resign immediately and without condition. He says they
   are  calling for a new electoral commission to be put in place to redo
   this presidential poll in the hopes that the law will be respected.
   Mr.  Compaoré's  campaign  did  not  express  concern  over the legal
   disputes.
   Mr. Compaoré's campaign director, Assimi Kouanda, says Burkinabe have
   once again demonstrated their attachment to democracy, freedom and Mr.
   Compaore. He says we are naturally very satisfied with these results.
   Mr.  Compaoré  has  been  in power since a 1987 coup and won the last
   election in 2005 with 80 percent of the votes.
   Analysts  say  Mr.  Compaoré  has  brought  stability  to  the  poor,
   landlocked West African country which has experienced five coups since
   independence in 1960.
   Independent  candidate,  Maxime  Kaboré,  says  he  is not contesting
   results.
   Kaboré  says  those who are contesting are sore losers. He says there
   were  certain  shortcomings  that  need  to  be improved upon, but the
   election  was  transparent  overall.  He  says  he can understand that
   voters  would want to keep the same president and preserve continuity,
   so long as there is peace.
   Burkinabe voters said this election held little suspense for them. The
   electoral commission announced Thursday that just over half of Burkina
   Faso's 3.2 million registered voters went to the polls.
   Mr. Compaoré's party is seeking to abolish constitutional term limits
   for  the  presidency.  According to the current limit of two five-year
   terms that was put in place in 2002, this election would be his last.
   Burkina  Faso's constitutional court has one week to review complaints
   and confirm results of the poll.