Nearly 7.5 million voters were called to the polls this Saturday, October 31, in Ivory Coast for the first round of presidential elections. A vote boycotted the opposition, which called for civil disobedience.
Voting day in Côte d’Ivoire was marked by low turnout places and events. In Abidjan, between boycott and fear of violence, many Ivorians still had not voted by noon in some neighborhoods. At an office in Cocody, where our special correspondent Alexandra Brangeon had gone early in the afternoon, only about twenty people had voted out of the 400 registered. Same observation in the surrounding offices.
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A few incidents were also recorded in the capital, particularly in the Blockhaus district, which was considered favorable to the opposition. At least one office had to be closed.
116 recorded incidents
Incidents have also been reported in the rest of the country. According to the civil society organization Indigo, which has deployed more than 1,000 observers in the field, 21% of polling stations across the country had still not opened by noon. Indigo recorded 116 incidents at noon. In Yamoussoukro, Daoukrou or Bongouanou, opposition protesters thus prevented the opening of offices. In Vavoa, Agboville, Adzopé, Daloa, election material was searched.
The exact extent of these events is unknown, as observers were unable to evolve anywhere. In Yamoussoukro, for example, people at Carter Center had to turn around, as roadblocks had been erected all over the city.
Election Commission, it’s tempering. “The damage is minimal,” the President of the Commission said at noon. “Hardly 30 or 40 polling stations are concerned.”
We said we did not agree that there were elections in Côte d’Ivoire.
In Bonoua, polling stations remained closed and some were searched
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