AP News, December 11th, 2006
Two opposition candidates said Monday they would go to court to challenge President Marc Ravalomanana's re-election and try to force a second round of voting.
The Interior Ministry said Sunday that Ravalomanana got 54.8 percent of the vote. Ravalomanana, a dairy tycoon known as the "Milkman," needed 50 percent to avoid a runoff.
Lahiniriko Jean, who finished second, and Roland Ratsiraka, who finished third, said they were filing complaints with the Constitutional High Court, alleging problems with the voters' rolls and seeking a new round of balloting for all 14 candidates.
"I do not accept the result. There were many problems with the electoral list and that means the result is not correct," Lahiniriko said.
Both he and Ratsiraka also questioned the impartiality of the Constitutional High Court and said they wanted it disqualified as the adjudicators of the elections.
Under Madagascar law, the court is responsible for verifying the count carried out by the Interior Ministry and for announcing the official results of the election.
"This is a sad day for the future of this country. The figures we have (for the count) are not the same as the ministry's," said Ratsiraka, who said he had delivered his challenge to the court on Monday.
Turnout across the country was 61.5 percent, according to the ministry. The results still must be verified by the Constitutional High Court, which is expected early next week.
Presidential aides have said they hoped the inauguration would take place in early January.
The world's fourth-largest island and its largest vanilla producer, Madagascar is mired in poverty, with 70 percent of the island's 17 million people living on less than $1 a day.
Madagascar is well known for its rare wildlife and ecotourism _ but also for its history of political unrest and infighting.
In the December 2001 elections, fighting broke out after former President Didier Ratsiraka refused to accept defeat by Ravalomanana. After months of rival governments in two capitals and low-level fighting between their loyalists, Ratsiraka fled to France in June 2002. Didier Ratsiraka is Roland Ratsiraka's uncle.
Two weeks ago, a retired army general called for the military to take control of the former French colony, calling the current government "unconstitutional."
Election observers said this year's vote had generally gone well, but raised some technical concerns that the ballot system favored the rich. Opposition candidates claimed the elections were undemocratic.
