Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan won the country’s disputed election with more than 97 per cent of the vote, according to official results announced early on Saturday, in a rare landslide victory in the region.
Hassan appeared at an event in the administrative capital, Dodoma, to receive the winner’s certificate from electoral authorities. In remarks afterwards, she said the result showed Tanzanians voted overwhelmingly for a female leader.
After the election, “it’s time to unite our country and not destroy what we’ve built over more than six decades,” she said. “We will take all actions and involve all security agencies to ensure the country is peaceful.”
Hassan took power in 2021. As vice president, she was automatically elevated when her predecessor, John Pombe Magufuli, died months after the start of his second term.
The result is likely to amplify the concerns of critics, opposition groups and others who said the election in Tanzania was not a contest but a coronation after Hassan’s two main rivals were barred or prevented from running.
She faced 16 candidates from smaller parties. The October 29 election was marred by violence as demonstrators took to the streets of major cities to protest the poll and stop the counting of votes.
The military was deployed to help police quell riots. Internet connectivity has been on and off in the East African nation, disrupting travel and other activities. The protests spread across Tanzania, and the Governmentpostponed the reopening of universities, which had been set for Nov. 3. There was a tense calm in the streets of Dar es Salaam, the commercial capital.