The election authority of the Democratic Republic of Congo has invalidated recent election outcomes for three government ministers and four provincial governors, citing fraud and voter intimidation as reasons.
On Friday, the electoral commission Ceni announced the cancellation of all votes cast for 82 election candidates in the central African nation, including three sitting government ministers and four provincial governors, one of whom is the governor of Kinshasa, the capital province.
This decision follows a December election marked by bureaucratic chaos, leading to significant delays. The political opposition in Congo has rejected the election, which included voting for the president, lawmakers for national and provincial assemblies, and local councillors.
Due to disarray and extended voting in some remote areas until December 27, Ceni annulled the results of prominent figures, citing fraud, acts of vandalism, voter intimidation, and illegal possession of voting machines.
Among those on the annulled list are Antoinette Kipulu Kabenga, minister for vocational training; regional integration minister Didier Mazenga Mukanzu; and Nana Manuanina Kihimba, a minister in the president's office. Four provincial governors, including Gentiny Ngobila, the head of Kinshasa province, are also affected.
As of now, the electoral commission has only released results from the presidential election, in which incumbent President Felix Tshisekedi reportedly won by a significant margin of 73 percent of the votes, pending confirmation by the Constitutional Court later this month.
Despite these results, leading Congolese opposition politicians have denounced the election, citing irregularities and delays, and have called for a re-run. Church leaders, who deployed their own election observers, noted numerous irregularities and have urged an investigation but stopped short of declaring the election fraudulent. A spokesperson for Ceni was not immediately available for comment.
