Patrice Talon

The government of Republic of Benin has announced that the second round of presidential polls would hold on Sunday, 20 March.

According to an announcement in Cotonou, the run-off would be between Prime Minister, Lionel Zinsou and Patrice Talon, a businessman.

The two are competing to replace outgoing President Thomas Yayi Boni, whose second term ends on April 6.

Prime Minister Lionel Zinsou

Zinsou, who is being supported by the incumbent president, took the lead among 33 candidates in the first round, winning some 28.4 per cent of the vote, against 4.8 per cent for his challenger Talon.

As at Monday, Talon has gained backing from 24 defeated candidates, among them Sebastien Ajavon, who took about 23 per cent of the vote.

Over 3.01 million votes casted have been registered for the first round of the presidential polls held on March 6.