Guinea-Bissau president loses race before run-off

KIGALI, Rwanda

Guinea-Bissau's incumbent president lost last month’s presidential vote, with the West African country headed for a runoff, according to preliminary results announced by election officials on Wednesday.

Domingos Simoes Pereira, the candidate of the ruling African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde -- who was fired by President Jose Mario Vaz as prime minister in 2015 -- garnered the most votes with 40%, Electoral Commission head Jose Pedro Sambu told reporters.

Former Prime Minister Umaro Sissoco Embalo got 28% of the vote while Vaz, who contested on an independent ticket, took only 12%.

The results of the Nov. 22 poll mean Vaz is now eliminated from taking part in a run-off vote slated for Dec. 29.

Guinea-Bissau has seen nine coups and coup attempts over the past three years.

For two decades, no elected head of state had finished his five-year mandate.

In 2009, then-President Joao Bernardo Vieira was assassinated.

Vaz took office in 2014 -- a tenure marred by power struggle with his own prime ministers as well as with opposition parties.

The National Election Commission data shows that of 761,676 registered voters, some 566,500 participated, a turnout of 74%.

Vaz’s campaign team alleged the election was rigged by his rivals.

However, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) rejected the claims.

ECOWAS on Monday warned it had a standby military force poised to "re-establish order" in the event of a coup.