Thus at four polling stations in the Quelimane Primary School, Araujo won 1,071 votes, while his opponent from the ruling Frelimo Party, Abel Henriques, took 602 votes.
At the two stations where results had been posted in the 3rd February Complete Primary School, Araujo beat Henriques by 567 to 225 votes.
Similarly, in four polling stations at the 7th September Compete Primary School, Araujo easily beat Henriques by 1,103 to 429 votes. At two polling stations in the Sinacura Primary School, Araujo won 626 votes to 326 for Henriques.
When AIM visited these polling stations, none of them had yet concluded the count for the election of members of the municipal assembly. In this election Frelimo and the MDM face a third contender, the tiny and virtually unknown National Reconciliation Party (PARENA).
All the polling stations visited by AIM are in the central, and richer, part of Quelimane, where the local elite lives. Initial indications from the suburban areas are that Araujo’s victory is much larger there.
Araujo was first elected mayor in a by-election held in December 2011, provoked by the resignation of the previous mayor, Pio Matos of Frelimo. Araujo was hamstrung by the fact that the municipal assembly was still controlled by Frelimo. This time it is likely that the MDM will hold a majority in the assembly.
These results are preliminary, and will not become official until they are confirmed by the National Elections Commission (CNE).
Post published in: Africa News