Sierra Leone counted votes in a tense presidential election on Monday following violence and the death of an opposition party volunteer at the weekend, as international observers voiced concern about lack of transparency in the tallying of ballots.
Provisional results are expected within 48 hours of Saturday’s vote, in which incumbent President Julius Maada Bio ran for a second term against a backdrop of public frustration over growing economic hardship in the West African nation.
The head of the main All People’s Congress (APC) opposition party, Samuel Kamara, is seen as Bio’s main rival.
Police fired tear gas at supporters gathered at APC headquarters in the capital Freetown on Sunday after the crowd turned rowdy, police said in a statement.
The police did not comment on what happened to the woman. An APC spokesperson said on Monday that she was a party volunteer and that she had died.
The European Union’s election observation mission meanwhile said it was concerned about the “highly polarised political environment”, and called for transparent vote-counting to build trust in the election process.