Togo poll final results show ruling party win

LOME, Oct 23 (Reuters) Togo's election commission announced the complete results of parliamentary elections today which showed the ruling party had won a clear majority but it said the country's top court must ratify the results.

The results from the October 14 vote showed the ruling Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) had obtained 50 out of the 81 national assembly seats, while the opposition Union of Forces for Change (UFC) took 27. A second opposition party won the remainder.

The election commission had said on Sunday it could not announce results for five seats in the capital Lome because of apparent irregularities in the vote counting and referred the matter to the country's constitutional court.

But the court, charged with ratifying the final results and hearing any legal challenges against them, insisted the commission announce the full results before it could rule.

It now has eight days to study the results, which have been challenged by the UFC, and make a decision.

Togolese authorities hope the election will lead to a full resumption of international aid to the country, which has suffered decades of authoritarian rule and periods of bloody unrest since independence in 1960.

The European Union, once Togo's biggest donor, froze most aid to the country in 1993, citing its poor democratic record.

International election observers have said last Sunday's polls were broadly free, fair and transparent.

Reuters AK VP0052