General elections were held in Liberia on 10 October 2017 to elect the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

and

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

. No candidate won a majority in the first round of the presidential vote, so the top two finishers —

CDC The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...

standard-bearer Amb.

George Weah George Tawlon Manneh Oppong Ousman Weah (; born 1 October 1966) is a Liberian politician and former professional footballer who is the incumbent president of Liberia, in office since 2018. Prior to his election to the presidency, Weah served as ...

and UP standard-bearer Vice President Joseph Boakai — competed in a run-off on 26 December. The second round was originally scheduled for 7 November, but was postponed after LP standard-bearer Cllr. Charles Brumskine, in third place, challenged the result in the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

.Liberia presidential vote halted by country's Supreme Court
BBC News, 1 November 2017 The Supreme Court dismissed the challenge, which would have forced a re-run of the first round had it been successful, and the second round was held on 26 December. Weah emerged victorious with 60% of the vote. The elections were overseen by the National Elections Commission (NEC) and were the first elections to be run entirely by the

Government of Liberia The Politics of Liberia takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic modeled on the government of the United States, whereby the President is the head of state and head of government; unlike the United States ...

and security forces since the conclusion of the

civil wars A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

in 2003.

Electoral system

The President is elected using the

two-round system The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...

, whilst the 73 members of the House of Representatives are elected by

first-past-the-post In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...

voting in single-member constituencies.

Candidates

Incumbent President

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (born Ellen Eugenia Johnson, 29 October 1938) is a Liberian politician who served as the 24th president of Liberia from 2006 to 2018. Sirleaf was the first elected female head of state in Africa. Sirleaf was born in Mon ...

, in office since 2006, was constitutionally barred from running for a third term; the election was therefore to choose her successor. * Joseph Boakai,Liberia's election threatens its fragile stability
''Financial Times'', 8 April 2016 Vice President since January 2006 * Charles Brumskine, Leader of the Liberty Party and former President Pro of the Senate * MacDella Cooper, philanthropist * Alexander B. Cummings, former Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of Coca-Cola *

Prince Yormie Johnson Prince Yormie Johnson"Prince" is a common given name for men in Liberia, rather than a royal title. (born 6 July 1952) is a Liberian politician and the current Senior Senator from Nimba County. A former rebel leader, Johnson played a prominent ...

, former rebel leader *Joseph Mills Jones, leader of the Movement for Economic Empowerment and former Governor of the

Central Bank of Liberia The Central Bank of Liberia is Liberia's central bank. Its current executive governor is J. Aloysius Tarlue. The offices of the bank are located in Monrovia, the capital of Liberia. The bank is a member of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion. ...

*Richard Miller, businessman *

Benoni Urey Benoni Wilfred Urey (born 22 June 1957) is an Americo-Liberian businessman and politician, who was formerly the Liberian Commissioner of Maritime Affairs. In 2014 ''The Economist'' reported that Urey was Liberia's wealthiest man. *

, former footballer who was defeated by

in the 2005 election *MacDonald A. Wento, United People's Party *Jeremiah Whapoe, businessman

Opinion polls

Conduct

The European Union Electoral Observer Mission (EU EOM)'s preliminary statement, issued on 12 October 2017, acknowledged generally peaceful polling. However, "The EU EOM has directly observed several instances of public officials engaged in campaigning that further hampered equality among contestants. The mission has received claims about the uneven use of state resources and access to public spaces working to the advantage of the incumbent. The mission's direct observation indicates a high level of monetisation of the campaign, where a culture of in-kind and financial hand-outs to communities prevails."Preliminary statement: Liberians mobilise for a democratic transition in elections, with scope for legal and procedural improvements
European Union Election Observation Mission, 12 October 2017

Results

President

House of Representatives

References

{{Liberian elections

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

Election, General Elections in Liberia

Election and referendum articles with incomplete results