Congo opposition, ruling coalition both say they've won chaotic electionIndependent National Electoral Commission (CENI) agents count votes during an electricity cut while watched by observers at Kiwele college in Lubumbashi on December 30, 2018. SEE ALSO :Congo hit by history's worst Ebola outbreakVital Kamerhe, the campaign manager to opposition candidate Felix Tshisekedi, said early counting showed Tshisekedi and the other main opposition candidate Martin Fayulu neck-and-neck in the lead, both with over 40 percent of the vote. He said the ruling coalition candidate, Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, who is backed by Kabila, had only about 13 percent, although a significant part of the vote remained to be tabulated. Election day was mostly peaceful despite several violent incidents, including an altercation at a polling place in eastern Congo in which at least three people were killed. However, in the Ebola hotspot of Beni, an opposition stronghold, residents staged a mock presidential election to show the authorities a decision to postpone the vote there due to health fears was unfounded.

Source: Standard Digital December 31, 2018 08:37 UTC