Voters queue to vote for the Presidential elections at a polling booth constructed in a run-down bus in Conakry on October 11, 2015. (AFP)
Conakry:
Turnout in the first controversial round of Guinea's presidential election this weekend was extremely high at almost 75 per cent, the country's electoral commission said today.
The October 11 vote was "characterised by serenity, calm and exceptional enthusiasm", the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) said in a statement.
"The turnout rate was around 75 per cent, sufficing to prove the interest that voters, that citizens, that all Guineans have for this election," it added.
The commission has been slammed by the opposition and by European Union observers for poor organisation of the Sunday poll. There was no news today on when official results might be announced.
EU observer mission chief Frank Engel has said the many logistical and organisational problems that surfaced in the ballot "confirmed the lack of preparation" by Guinea's CENI.
Irate opposition leaders have called for a re-run of a ballot, which they deem fraudulent, with some pledging to take to the streets in protest.
It was only the second democratic presidential election in the west African country since independence in 1958.
Opposition leader Cellou Dalein Diallo dubbed Sunday's vote "a masquerade, a massive fraud throughout the day."
The first free presidential vote in 2010, won by incumbent President Alpha Conde, was tainted by accusations of fraud that led to violence, as were legislative polls three years later.
Even before voting opened in the presidential race, opposition parties had warned of fraud and vote-rigging and accused the CENI of mismanaging the poll.
Conde was elected five years ago to head the mineral-rich but impoverished nation after returning from three decades in exile to defeat Diallo, a former prime minister who remains his closest rival.
The October 11 vote was "characterised by serenity, calm and exceptional enthusiasm", the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) said in a statement.
"The turnout rate was around 75 per cent, sufficing to prove the interest that voters, that citizens, that all Guineans have for this election," it added.
The commission has been slammed by the opposition and by European Union observers for poor organisation of the Sunday poll. There was no news today on when official results might be announced.
EU observer mission chief Frank Engel has said the many logistical and organisational problems that surfaced in the ballot "confirmed the lack of preparation" by Guinea's CENI.
Irate opposition leaders have called for a re-run of a ballot, which they deem fraudulent, with some pledging to take to the streets in protest.
It was only the second democratic presidential election in the west African country since independence in 1958.
Opposition leader Cellou Dalein Diallo dubbed Sunday's vote "a masquerade, a massive fraud throughout the day."
The first free presidential vote in 2010, won by incumbent President Alpha Conde, was tainted by accusations of fraud that led to violence, as were legislative polls three years later.
Even before voting opened in the presidential race, opposition parties had warned of fraud and vote-rigging and accused the CENI of mismanaging the poll.
Conde was elected five years ago to head the mineral-rich but impoverished nation after returning from three decades in exile to defeat Diallo, a former prime minister who remains his closest rival.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
