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 Liberiaportal |
General elections were held in Liberia on May 1, 1849, alongside a constitutional referendum. [1] The result was a victory for incumbent President Joseph Jenkins Roberts of the True Liberian Party, [2] [3] who defeated Samuel Benedict of the Anti-Administration Party. [4]
The Politics of Liberia takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic modeled on the government of the United States, whereby the president is the head of state and head of government; unlike the United States, however, Liberia is a unitary state as opposed to a federation and has a pluriform multi-party system rather than the two-party system that characterizes US politics. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of the legislature.
The president of the Republic of Liberia is the head of state and government of Liberia. The president serves as the leader of the executive branch and as commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Liberia.
Joseph Jenkins Roberts was an American merchant who emigrated to Liberia in 1829, where he became a politician. Elected as the first (1848–1856) and seventh (1872–1876) president of Liberia after independence, he was the first man of African descent to govern the country, serving previously as governor from 1841 to 1848. He later returned to office following the 1871 Liberian coup d'état. Born free in Norfolk, Virginia, Roberts emigrated as a young man with his mother, siblings, wife, and child to the young West African colony. He opened a trading firm in Monrovia and later engaged in politics.
Elections in Liberia occur solely at the national level. The head of state, the President of Liberia, is elected to a six-year term in a two-round system, in which a run-off between the two candidates with the highest number of votes is held should no single candidate earn a majority of the vote in the first round. The Legislature has two elected chambers.
General elections were held in Liberia on 11 October 2005, with a runoff election for the presidency held on 8 November. The presidency and all seats in the House of Representatives and Senate were up for election. The elections were the first held since 1997 and marked the end of the political transition following the second civil war, having been stipulated in the Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 2003. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former World Bank employee and Liberian finance minister, won the presidential contest and became the first democratically elected female African head of state in January 2006.
The First Liberian Civil War was the first of two civil wars within the West African nation of Liberia which lasted between 1989 and 1997. President Samuel Doe's regime of totalitarianism and widespread corruption led to calls for withdrawal of the support of the United States, by the late 1980s. The National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) led by Charles Taylor invaded Liberia from the Ivory Coast to overthrow Doe in December 1989 and gained control over most of the country within a year. Doe was captured and executed by the Independent National Patriotic Front of Liberia (INPFL), a splinter faction of the NPFL led by Prince Johnson, in September 1990. The NPFL and INPFL fought each other for control of the capital city, Monrovia and against the Armed Forces of Liberia and pro-Doe United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy. Peace negotiations and foreign involvement led to a ceasefire in 1995 but fighting continued until a peace agreement between the main factions occurred in August 1996. Taylor was elected President of Liberia following the 1997 Liberian general election and entered office in August of the same year.
The Liberian People's Party (LPP) is a political party in Liberia.
The Legislature of Liberia is the bicameral legislature of the government of Liberia. It consists of a Senate – the upper house, and a House of Representatives – the lower house, modeled after the United States Congress. Sessions are held at the Capitol Building in Monrovia. Legislature of Liberia is considered one of the three branches of government based on the Article III of the Constitution of Liberia that stipulates all three branches ought to be equal and coordinated based on the Principle of checks and balances.
Presidential elections were held in Liberia in 1851. The result was a victory for incumbent President Joseph Jenkins Roberts of the True Liberian Party, who was the only candidate.
General elections were held in Liberia in 1853. The presidential election resulted in a victory for incumbent President Joseph Jenkins Roberts of the True Liberian Party, who was the only candidate.
General elections were held in Liberia on 5 May 1863. The presidential election resulted in a victory for Daniel Bashiel Warner of the Republican Party, defeating Chief Justice Boston Jenkins Drayton. Warner took office on 4 January 1864.
General elections were held in Liberia in May 1865. Incumbent President Daniel Bashiel Warner of the Republican Party was the only candidate for the presidency, and was re-elected unopposed.
General elections were held in Liberia on 6 May 1873. Incumbent President Joseph Jenkins Roberts of the Republican Party was the only candidate in the presidential elections, and was re-elected unopposed.
General elections were held in Liberia in May 1875. The presidential elections resulted in a victory for former President James Spriggs Payne of the Republican Party, who defeated Anthony W. Gardiner of the True Whig Party.
General elections were held in Liberia in May 1879. Incumbent president Anthony W. Gardiner of the True Whig Party was the only candidate in the presidential elections, and was elected unopposed.
General elections were held in Liberia in 1899. In the presidential election, incumbent William D. Coleman of the True Whig Party was re-elected for a second full term, defeating Anthony D. Williams, Jr. of the National Union.
General elections were held in Liberia on 4 May 1943 alongside a constitutional referendum. William Tubman of the True Whig Party was elected president, defeating James F. Cooper of the Democratic Party, a former secretary of the interior. He took office on 3 January 1944.
Nathaniel Brander (1796–1870) was an Americo-Liberian politician and jurist who served as the first vice president of Liberia from 1848 to 1850 under President Joseph Jenkins Roberts.
A constitutional referendum was held in Liberia on 1 May 1849, alongside general elections. The constitutional changes would increase the number of members of the House of Representatives for Sinoe County from one to three. The proposals were approved by voters.
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