Congo re-elects Sassou Nguesso
2009-07-15 22:20
Brazzaville - Veteran incumbent Denis Sassou Nguesso swept to victory in Congo's presidential elections with 78.6% of the vote, provisional results showed on Wednesday.
Sassou Nguesso won 1 055 117 of the votes cast with turnout put at 66.42%, according to figures from the territorial administration ministry.
Independent candidate Joseph Kignoumbi Kia Mboungou trailed in a distant second with 7.46% of the votes.
Former finance minister Mathias Dzon, who had been regarded as Sassou Nguesso's main rival, won only 2.3%, according to the ministry.
The 66-year-old former military ruler, who had been widely expected to triumph in a field of 12 candidates, is one of Africa's long-serving leaders having first come to power three decades ago.
Sassou Nguesso's first stint as president of the former French colony stretched from 1979 to 1992 and he returned to the presidency in 1997 after a civil war.
- SAPA
