BY-ELECTION ARCHIVE
Two vacancies in the House of Representatives
Liberia held two representative by-elections in 2012, both following the deaths of sitting lawmakers: Sinoe County Electoral District 3 on 3 April and Montserrado County Electoral District 11 on 3 July.
Sinoe County District 3 — 3 April
The vacancy followed the death of Representative Nelson Wah Barh, who had been reelected in the 2011 general election. The National Elections Commission prepared 13,000 ballot papers for distribution among 38 polling places across 27 voting precincts.
Matthew G. Zarzar of the Unity Party won the by-election and entered the 53rd Legislature as the representative for Sinoe County District 3.
Montserrado County District 11 — 3 July
Representative Moses S. Tandanpolie Sr. died on 16 March 2012. The Speaker of the House formally notified the NEC of the vacancy on 14 April, and the Commission issued the writ of election on 25 April.
Eleven candidates were cleared to participate—four representing political parties and seven running as independents. J. Gabriel Seedee Nyenka of the Unity Party won the contest. The NEC announced the official result and certified him on 5 July 2012.
Constitutional context
Both contests were conducted under Article 37 of Liberia’s Constitution, which requires notification of a legislative vacancy and directs the Elections Commission to hold a by-election within the constitutional period.
Archive status
The dates, causes of vacancy, winners, party affiliations and administrative chronology are verified. The surviving NEC web statements refer readers to attached tally sheets for detailed candidate totals; those figures will be added after the original sheets can be reliably transcribed and independently checked.