November 9, 2005
ANOTHER PEOPLE REJECTS SOCCER:
Johnson-Sirleaf Leads Runoff in Liberia (TODD PITMAN, November 9, 2005, The Associated Press)
Liberia's top female politician took a strong early lead Wednesday in a presidential runoff as her millionaire soccer star opponent charged the vote was fraudulent, clouding elections that had raised hopes for peace in the war-ravaged country.Harvard-educated Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf had 56.4 percent of Tuesday's vote with results in from 59 percent of polling stations across the country, the head of the National Election Commission said. George Weah had 43.6 percent.
Posted by Orrin Judd at November 9, 2005 7:15 PM
A soccer player versus an economist from Harvard. And they say we have terrible choices.
Posted by: jeff at November 9, 2005 8:03 PMMy favorite part of this is that George Weah campaigned under the slogan:
He didn't kill your ma;
he didn't kill your pa;
Vote for George Weah!
I would have thought that went without saying, but apparently not in Liberia - and in fact, it was a parody of Taylors' sucessful (!!) slogan:
He killed my ma, he killed my pa,
but I'm voting for him anyway.
I suppose this is progress.
Posted by: Mike Earl at November 9, 2005 10:02 PM