BY-ELECTION ARCHIVE
Two House vacancies, two county contests
Liberia held two House of Representatives by-elections in 2015: River Cess County Electoral District 2 on 21 April and Lofa County Electoral District 2 on 29 December. Both contests filled vacancies arising during the 53rd Legislature.
River Cess County District 2 — 21 April
The seat became vacant after Representative Francis Paye won election to the Senate in the December 2014 special senatorial election. The Speaker notified the National Elections Commission of the vacancy on 22 January 2015.
Byron Wehgbiah Zahnwea of the Movement for Progressive Change won with 1,583 votes (24.6%). Matthew T. Wally of the Liberty Party placed second with 1,468 votes (22.9%). Ten candidates contested, and all 42 polling centers reported.
The NEC recorded 6,422 valid votes and 300 invalid ballots, for 6,722 total votes from 16,003 registered voters—approximately 42% turnout. Zahnwea was declared the winner on 24 April and certified on 6 May 2015.
Lofa County District 2 — 29 December
The second contest followed the death of Representative Fofi Sahr Baimba on 13 September 2015. The NEC was notified of the vacancy on 6 October.
Julie Fatorma Wiah, an independent candidate, won with 1,974 votes (20.11%). Augustine Boakai Lansana of the Unity Party was second with 1,664 votes (16.95%), followed by Molsema Mamara of the Congress for Democratic Change with 1,573 votes (16.02%). Ten candidates contested.
All 73 polling centers reported. Of 31,273 registered voters, 10,207 cast ballots—32.64% turnout. The count comprised 9,816 valid votes and 391 invalid ballots. The NEC announced the final result on 31 December 2015 and certified Wiah in January 2016.
Archive status
The dates, causes of vacancy, candidate totals and participation figures are verified against National Elections Commission releases. These records document changes in representation between Liberia’s nationwide election cycles.