Namibia president re-elected: official results
WINDHOEK — Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba has been re-elected after winning more than 75 percent of the vote in last week's elections, according to official results released Friday.
Pohamba's ruling South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO), in power since independence in 1990, also maintained its two-thirds majority in parliament.
"I am a happy man. I, on behalf of SWAPO accept the election. I am grateful to the Namibian people who once again trusted me," said Pohamba.
The official election commission tally showed Pohamba with 76.4 percent of the presidential vote, while SWAPO secured 75.3 percent in the legislative polls.
The breakaway Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP), led by former foreign minister Hidipo Hamutenya, secured 11 percent of the vote in each of the polls.
Earlier Friday, eight of the 13 Namibian opposition parties rejected the results of the elections and said they would file a court challenge.
The parties had instructed their legal teams to institute proceedings against the Electoral Commission of Namibia "for contravening the electoral law of the country," they said.
The parties have complained about the slow pace of ballot counting from the polls held last Friday and Saturday, and say they were not adequately informed about the vote verification process.
African observers of the elections have pronounced them free and fair, while recommending that Namibia take steps to speed up the counting process and free up access to the media for all parties.
Eight of the 13 opposition parties that contested the legislative and presidential elections said they would file a court case to challenge the results, with the final outcome expected later Friday.
"Our eight parties will not accept the election results as the elections were conducted in contravention of the law," a joint statement said.
"Accepting this supposed elections outcome will be tantamount to undermining democracy in Namibia."
The parties had instructed their legal teams to institute proceedings against the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) "for contravening the electoral law of the country," they said.
The parties have complained about the slow pace of ballot counting from the polls held last Friday and Saturday, and say they were not adequately informed about the vote verification process.
Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved. More »
Final results from Namibian presidential and parliamentary elections have indicated that the incumbent president, Hifikepunye Pohamba, has been reelected by a large margin. The ruling party, South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO), also retained a majority in the parliamentary elections.

File photograph of Hifikepunye Pohamba Pohamba won 76.4% of the vote in the presidential ballots; meanwhile, SWAPO obtained 75.27% in the parliamentary polls. The Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) party came in a distant second at 11.31%. SWAPO won 54 out of 72 seats in the National Assembly. The RDP took eight seats.

"I am a happy man. I, on behalf of SWAPO accept the election. I am grateful to the Namibian people who once again trusted me," Pohama commented after his reelection.

Eight of the thirteen parties competing with SWAPO said that they rejected the results of the polls, and would challenge them in court "for contravening the electoral law of the country." They claimed that they hadn't been properly informed about the process of vote verification, and that the speed at which the votes were counted was too slow.

A joint statement released by the parties said that "our eight parties will not accept the election results as the elections were conducted in contravention of the law. Accepting this supposed elections outcome will be tantamount to undermining democracy in Namibia."

African election observers, however, deemed the Namibian elections free and fair.