Seychelles Presidential Election Heads To Runoff As No Candidate Wins Majority

(MENAFN- IANS) Victoria, Sep 28 (IANS) The Electoral Commission of Seychelles announced Sunday that the country will proceed to a runoff presidential election, as no candidate secured more than half of the votes in the first round.

The results of the first round of the Seychelles presidential election were released on Sunday. Among the eight candidates, Patrick Herminie of the United Seychelles, the country's main opposition party, received 48.8 per cent of the votes, while incumbent President Wavel Ramkalawan of the Seychellois Democratic Union (Linyon Demokratik Seselwa -- LDS) garnered 46.4 per cent.

According to the electoral commission, the runoff will take place from October 9 to 11, reports Xinhua news agency.

Under the Constitution of Seychelles, the presidential term is five years. A candidate who secures more than half of the votes in the first round is declared the winner. If no candidate achieves this majority, the two leading contenders advance to a second round of voting.

On the same day, the electoral commission released the results of the National Assembly election. The United Seychelles won 20 seats, while the LDS secured 15.

"I would like to thank the people of Seychelles for making the very wise decision to revisit the percentage of representation in the National Assembly and to give me that support of almost 49 per cent so that I can go into a second round," Herminie said shortly after the official announcement of results.

For his part, Ramkalawan congratulated the United Seychelles for winning a majority in the National Assembly, saying, "It is my second time going into a second round."

"I pray only for peace, that we conduct a civilised campaign, and I look forward to this next fight," he added.

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