Sudan’s al-Bashir re-elected with 94 percent of vote

Omar al-Bashir, who faces war-crimes charges, declared winner by election commission, extending his 25-year rule.

Bashir re-elected Sudan president
The Election Commission put turnout at 46.4 percent and denied widespread reports of low participation [Reuters]

Sudan’s Election Commission says President Omar al-Bashir has won re-election with 94 percent of the vote, extending his 25-year rule despite war-crimes charges and domestic rebellions.

The Election Commission put turnout at 46.4 percent and denied widespread reports of low participation.

Mokhtar al-Assam, the head of the commission, announced the results on Monday, saying reports of low turnout were “not accurate”.

The four-day vote began on April 13. Nearly 13 million people were registered to vote at nearly 11,000 polling centres. Polling stations in the capital, Khartoum, were largely deserted.

Al-Bashir, who took power in a bloodless coup in 1989, is the only sitting head of state facing genocide charges at the International Criminal Court. The charges stem from the conflict in the Darfur region.

Source: AP