Al-Bashir had been widely expected to retain the presidency after a number of opposition parties withdrew their candidates, but the official announcement of the results on Monday confirmed his victory with 68 per cent of the vote.
“The first [was] Omar Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir. He was the candidate and won,” Abel Alier, the chairman of Sudan’s National Elections Commission, said.
Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Adow, reporting from the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, said al-Bashir addressed the nation following the announcement to thank his supporters.
“He has been saying that he will serve all Sudanese whether they voted for him or not,” our correspondent said.
The election commission also announced that Salva Kiir, the leader of the former rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), won re-election in the presidential poll in Sudan’s semi-autonomous southern region.
Kiir, a former rebel commander, won 92.9 per cent of the 2,616,613 votes in the South, Alier, the commission chairman, said.
No surprises here. I should have a brief analysis up tomorrow. In the meantime, I’m eager to hear readers’ reactions.
Sahel Blog 