Guinea-Bissau counts votes in referendum on expanding presidential powers

Ballot counters in Guinea-Bissau began opening voting boxes after polls closed in a national referendum. The vote asks citizens whether to expand executive powers for the president. Military officers currently run the West African nation.

The vote took place ahead of a general election scheduled for later this year. Officials set that general election with the explicit goal of restoring civilian rule to the country.

Poll workers locked voting sites across the capital of Bissau and surrounding rural regions as voting hours ended. Staff members immediately began sorting paper ballots by hand.

The Referendum and Presidential Powers

The ballot measure proposes direct changes to the constitutional structure of the state. Under the current constitutional framework, executive authority is divided between the president and a prime minister chosen by the parliamentary majority.

This division of authority led to frequent disputes between

According to Africanews Culture.