[JURIST] Togo’s constitutional court declared Faure Gnassingbe president for a third five-year term after tallying votes on Sunday. Head of the Constitutional Court Aboudou Assouma said on state television that the final results show that Gnassingbe receive a majority of the votes with about 59 percent. Gnassingbe’s main challenger, Jean-Pierre Fabre, received about 35 percent of the votes. “Having obtained a majority of the votes, Faure Gnassingbe must be declared president,” said Assouma [AP report]. The opposition did not immediately react to the final results Sunday. Earlier this week, Fabre rejected provisional results and called for people to mobilize by all legal means. Gnassingbe will be sworn in as president on Monday.

The win extends the Gnassingbe family’s rule of Togo to nearly 50 years. Gnassingbe took office [JURIST report] in February 2005 immediately following the death of his father, Gnassingbe Eyadema [BBC obituary], who was president of Togo for 38 years and one of the country’s longest serving leaders. Gnassingbe’s unconstitutional succession to office [JURIST report] was met with international outcry, and pressure from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) member countries led to his resignation [JURIST reports]. Togo’s Parliament then named Abass Bonfoh, a member of the ruling party, as acting president. In May 2005 the constitutional court confirmed Gnassingbe as the official winner of the disputed presidential election [JURIST reports]. Gnassingbe won re-election [JURIST report] in 2010.