Rwandan President Paul Kagame has won an overwhelming victory in the country’s presidential election, securing 99.15 percent of the votes, according to provisional results announced by the electoral commission.
This win marks Kagame’s fourth term in office.
With approximately 79 percent of ballots counted, the Rwandan National Electoral Commission reported that 9.5 million people had registered to vote in a nation with a total population of about 14 million.
Kagame’s main challengers, Frank Habineza of the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda and independent candidate Philippe Mpayimana, received less than one percent of the votes each, as indicated by the preliminary figures.
Paul Kagame has been a central figure in Rwandan politics since the end of the genocide in 1994, where he played a key role in leading the Rwandan Patriotic Front to victory, which ended the mass killings. Since then, Kagame has been credited with transforming Rwanda into one of Africa’s most stable and economically successful countries, though his administration has faced criticism over human rights concerns and suppression of political opposition.
In his campaign, Kagame emphasized his record of economic development and national security, promising continued stability and growth for Rwanda. Critics, however, argue that the electoral process was skewed in Kagame’s favor, pointing to restrictions on political freedoms and media control. Despite these controversies, Kagame remains a highly popular figure among many Rwandans, who view him as a guarantor of peace and prosperity.