Deby declared winner in presidential poll

Chad's state election body has confirmed that interim President Mahamat Idriss Deby had won the 6 May presidential election outright with over 61% of the vote, citing provisional results, even as his main challenger declared himself the winner. The East African notes that Chad's junta has become the first of the coup-hit countries in West and Central Africa to stage a return to constitutional rule via the ballot box, but some opposition parties have cried foul over vote-rigging concerns. National Election Management Agency chief Ahmed Bartichet said Deby had secured 61.3% of the vote, comfortably over the 50% needed to avoid a run-off.