Rain closes some polling venues as Fiji elects new leader
SUVA, Fiji — Fiji on Wednesday night was waiting to see which of two men who led different military coups would win the nation’s general election after heavy rainfall affected voter turnout.
The bad weather prompted officials to close more than 20 polling venues, affecting more than 7,000 voters who were promised the chance to vote at a later date.
Opinion polls indicate Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama is poised to win a second term after he first held democratic elections in 2014, eight years after seizing power in a coup.
His main opponent is Sitiveni Rabuka, who led two military coups in the 1980s before serving seven years as prime minister. Just this week, a judge cleared Rabuka of an electoral disclosure violation in a case many viewed as being politically motivated.