President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Tshisekedi has been re-elected after a disputed election

CNN
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The Democratic Republic of the Congo's Electoral Commission said on Sunday that Democratic Republic of the Congo President Felix Tshisekedi was re-elected for a second term after obtaining more than 73% of the votes in the elections held on December 20.

The announcement of the result comes days after the opposition complained about the way the elections were conducted.

Tshisekedi received more than 13 million votes out of more than 18 million valid votes cast, Denis Kadima, head of the Independent National Electoral Commission, said when announcing the results in the capital, Kinshasa, adding that the turnout rate exceeded 43%.

Cheers erupted from Tshisekedi's supporters who attended the announcement after Kadima announced Tshisekedi's provisional election.

Political parties, candidates, and their delegates have two days to challenge the election results before the Constitutional Court. The court then has seven days to decide the case and announce the final result.

Moise Katumbi, the most likely opposition candidate, who came in second place with 18%, ruled out filing a legal challenge to the results of the Independent National Electoral Commission, citing the alleged lack of independence of state institutions.

Other opposition candidates did not indicate whether they would challenge the results.

Earlier on Sunday, a group of nine opposition presidential candidates, including Katumbi, and six political party leaders asked their supporters to take to the streets to protest after the preliminary results were announced.

“We categorically reject the sham elections…and their results,” the main opposition candidates said in a joint declaration. They demanded that new elections be held with a new electoral body on a date agreed upon by everyone.

They said: “We call on our people to take to the streets en masse after the announcement of election fraud.”

The Congolese government had previously rejected calls for re-elections.

Logistical setbacks, moving past Election Day and an opaque vote count have fueled a conflict that threatens to further destabilize a country roughly the size of Western Europe and the world's largest producer of cobalt and other precious industrial commodities.

Since election day, some of Tshisekedi's main rivals, including former oil executive Martin Fayulu, have called for a rerun of the elections and legislative elections, accusing INEC of allowing votes to be skewed in favor of the president.

The Independent National Electoral Commission and the government rejected these allegations as well as warnings from independent observer groups that the unscheduled extension of voting and other incidents on Election Day, and during the tabulation of votes, may have damaged the credibility and legal standing of the vote.