Former global soccer star George Weah was declared the winner of Liberia’s long-delayed presidential election on Thursday, completing the West African nation’s first democratic transfer of power in more than seven decades. With 98% of the ballots tallied, Mr. Weah—the only African to be crowned FIFA’s World Player of the Year, in 1995—had won 61.5% of the vote, far ahead of Vice President Joseph Boakai’s 38.5%, said Jerome Korkoyah, chairman of Liberia’s National Election Commission.

Source: Wall Street Journal December 28, 2017 21:27 UTC