На информационном ресурсе применяются рекомендательные технологии (информационные технологии предоставления информации на основе сбора, систематизации и анализа сведений, относящихся к предпочтениям пользователей сети "Интернет", находящихся на территории Российской Федерации)

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Congo Votes, Amid Ebola Crisis and Problems at Polls, After Years’ Delay

Author: Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura / Source: New York Times

Elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo, delayed by two years and a week, finally took place on Sunday in most of the country. Patrick Meinhardt/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Long-anticipated elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo, already delayed by two years and a week, finally got underway on Sunday, but they were deeply flawed, with more than a million voters excluded from casting their ballots, most of them in opposition strongholds.

Across the country, many voters arrived at polling places only to find that their names were not on electoral rolls. Some voting centers opened seven hours late, partly because of a storm and also because electoral rolls had not arrived in time. Voting machines, in use for the first time, malfunctioned in a number of polling places.

The landmark vote is the country’s first transfer of power through the ballot box since it gained independence in 1960. It was supposed to mark the end of President Joseph Kabila’s nearly 18-year rule, although he recently insinuated that he was open to returning to power later.

The elections were originally scheduled to take place in 2016 but were delayed twice, allowing Mr. Kabila to remain in office beyond the constitutionally mandated two-term limit. They were supposed to have been held last Sunday, but were pushed back again by one week because of violence, technical problems and a raging Ebola epidemic in eastern Congo.

Across the country, many voters arrived at polling places only to find that their names were not on electoral rolls.

There were fears that voting irregularities on Election Day would incite violence, potentially plunging the country into even deeper chaos and possibly even igniting regional turmoil. Already, in the weeks before the vote, security forces had cracked down on protesters, killing several,…

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