Wikipedia

Unity Party (Liberia)

The Unity Party (UP) is a political party in Liberia that was started in 1984 by Edward B. Kesselly, also its first standard bearer. Officially founded in Buchanan, Grand Bassa County, the party was established on 27 July 1985.[1] The Unity Party participated in the first elections after the 1980 coup, running against President Samuel Doe in October 1985. The party has remained active in Liberian politics since and is the current ruling party following the 2023 Liberian general election.

Unity Party
AbbreviationUP
ChairpersonLuther Tarpeh
Senate LeaderJoseph Boakai
FounderEdward Kesselly
Founded1984
IdeologyLiberal democracy
Economic liberalism
Political positionCentre to centre-right
International affiliationInternational Democrat Union
Continental affiliationDemocrat Union of Africa
ColoursGreen and maroon
SloganOne Nation, One People, With Liberty And Justice For All
Seats in the Senate
13 / 30
Seats in the House
11 / 73
Pan African Parliament
2 / 5
Website
http://www.theunitypartyliberia.org

In the elections held on 19 July 1997, the UP presidential candidate Ellen Johnson Sirleaf won 9.58% of the vote. The party won seven of 64 seats in the House of Representatives and three of 26 available in the Senate. While international observers deemed the polls administratively free and transparent, they noted that it had taken place in an atmosphere of intimidation because most voters believed that former rebel leader and National Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate Charles Taylor would return to war if defeated.

Unity Party candidate Sirleaf won the 2005 presidential elections, defeating George Weah of the Congress for Democratic Change (CDC) in a runoff. The party also won three seats in the Senate and 8 in the House of Representatives. The merger of the Liberia Unification Party and the Liberian Action Party into the Unity Party on 1 April 2009 substantially increased its representation in the Legislature.[2]

The party lost in the runoff of the 2017 Liberian general election to ex-footballer and previous runoff candidate George Weah.[3] On 13 January 2018, the party expelled[4] President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf from the party for campaigning for and with Weah against her own Vice President, Joseph Boakai, who was campaigning on the party ticket.[5][6]

In 2023, the party won the 2023 Liberian general election, defeating the incumbent George Weah by less than 21,000 votes—making it the closest runoff in Liberia's electoral history.

Party Leadership

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Former Vice President Boakai remains the Standard Bearer of the Party and the leading opposition contender for the upcoming 2023 Presidential elections. Hon. Boakai was instrumental in the formation of the Collaborating Political Parties (CPP) that brought together the four largest opposition political parties, the All Liberian Party (ALP), the Alternative National Congress (ANC), the Liberty Party (LP), and the Unity Party (UP) to form an opposition bloc against Pres. Weah's Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC).

The Party is constitutionally led by its chairman, Amin Modad, who was elected in September 2020 with over 62% majority after defeating veteran politician Sen. Conmany Wesseh and others. Modad, a former representative to the World Trade Organization, cited his business background as evidence of his suitability for the role.

Electoral history

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Presidential elections

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Election Candidate Votes % Votes % Result
First round Second round
1985 Edward Kesselly 57,273 11.04% - - Lost  N
1997 Ellen Johnson Sirleaf 59,557 9.58% - - Lost  N
2005 192,326 19.75% 478,526 59.40% Won  Y
2011 530,020 43.93% 607,618 90.71% Won  Y
2017 Joseph Boakai 446,716 28.76% 457,579 38.46% Lost  N
2023 796,961 43.44% 814,481 50.64% Won  Y

House of Representatives elections

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Election Vote % Seats +/– Position
1985 57,273 11.04%
2 / 64
 New   4th
1997 59,557 9.57%
7 / 120
   1   2nd
2005 123,373 12.49%
8 / 64
   1   4th
2011 226,291 17.76%
24 / 73
   2   1st
2017 220,508 14.32%
20 / 73
   4   2nd
2023 237,931 13.09%
11 / 73
   9   2nd

Senate elections

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Election Votes % Seats +/– Position
1985 57,273 11.04%
1 / 26
 New   4th
1997 59,557 9.57%
3 / 26
   2   2nd
2005 222,705 12.93%
4 / 30
   1   2nd
2011 164,851 12.85%
10 / 30
   1   1st
2014 47,123 10.33%
8 / 30
   2   1st
2020 354,898
(As part of CPP) 		40.27%
6 / 30
   2   1st
2023 218,138 12.04%
3 / 30
   3   2nd

References

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  1. ^ "UP To Do Formal Launching Tomorrow". [Monrovia] SunTimes, 1985-07-26: 1/13.
  2. ^ UP, LAP, LUP Mergedâ€[sic¦Ellen Says It's[sic] A Dream Come True], The Liberian Journal, Jimmey C. Fahngon, April 2, 2009
  3. ^ "NEC Liberia :: Results 2017". www.necliberia.org. Archived from the original on 2017-10-14.
  4. ^ "Liberia's Sirleaf expelled from her party". BBC News. 2018. Retrieved 2018-01-15.
  5. ^ "Ellen Johnson Sirleaf: Liberia's president expelled from her party". BBC News. 14 January 2018.
  6. ^ E. J. Nathaniel Daygbor (September 9, 2020). "New faces in UP". The New Dawn Liberia. Archived from the original on April 28, 2022.
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