Paul Kagame is poised for a landslide victory in Rwanda’s election, having secured 99.15 percent of the votes in partial results released by the National Electoral Commission.
The Commission reported that Kagame has garnered 7,099,810 votes, representing 99.15 percent of the total votes tallied so far. His closest challenger, Habineza Frank, has received 38,301 votes (0.53 percent), while Mfayimana Philippe has 22,753 votes (0.32 percent).
Vote tallying is still ongoing, according to the Commission.
Kagame, who has been in power for 24 years, was expected to win by a significant margin. He has dominated every election since becoming president in 2000, consistently receiving over 90% of the vote. In 2017, he won with an impressive 99%.
At 66, Kagame faced only two contenders authorized to run, as other candidates were barred by the state-run electoral commission.
Kagame has been a central figure in Rwandan politics since his rebel forces ended the 1994 genocide, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus. He has since been praised for overseeing Rwanda’s dramatic revival and unifying the country.
