RWANDA ELECTION: Paul Kagame Now With 95.15% - Partial Results

Summary

• President Paul Kagame is poised to extend his 24-year rule in Rwanda with a landslide victory, having secured 99.15% of the vote so far, with 79% of ballots counted.
• His two opponents, Frank Habineza and Philippe Mpayimana, have received less than 1% of the vote combined.
• The election saw high participation with 98% voter turnout among the 9.5 million eligible voters, despite several prominent opposition figures being banned.

Kigali, Rwanda - President Paul Kagame is on track to extend his 24-year rule by another five years following a landslide victory in Monday's election. With 79% of the ballots counted, partial results from the electoral commission show Kagame securing 99.15% of the vote.

The 66-year-old incumbent faced minimal opposition, as leading figures were banned from running. His two opponents, environmentalist Frank Habineza and journalist-author Philippe Mpayimana, garnered only 0.53% and 0.32% of the vote, respectively.

In an address at the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) party headquarters, Kagame expressed gratitude to the Rwandan people for their overwhelming support. “These are not just figures, even if it was 100%, these are not just numbers. [They] show the trust, and that is what is most important," he stated.

The full provisional results are expected by July 20, with final results to be announced by July 27. The results mirror the 2017 election, where Kagame won with 98.8% of the vote against the same opponents.

The electoral commission reported a high voter turnout, with 98% of the more than 9.5 million eligible voters participating in the elections for the president and 53 legislators. Elections for 27 special seats allocated for women, young people, and people with disabilities are scheduled for Tuesday.

Kagame has been Rwanda's de-facto leader since the end of the 1994 genocide and officially became president in 2000. Despite accusations from rights groups of curtailing freedoms, Kagame's supporters credit him with significant economic growth and efforts to end ethnic divisions in the country.