Hundreds of supporters of the losing Madagascar presidential candidate staged a protest in the capital Antananarivo on Thursday, rejecting the election result ahead of a court verdict reviewing the vote.
Former president Marc Ravalomanana was defeated on December 19 by another former leader of the Indian Ocean island, Andry Rajoelina, who won nearly 56% of a run-off vote.
The country’s Constitutional Court is reviewing a petition filed by Ravalomanana, who claims the election was tarnished by massive fraud.
The court is due to hand down its ruling on January 8.
Ravalomanana and Rajoelina, long-term rivals, were banned from running in the 2013 election as part of an agreement to end recurring crises that have rocked Madagascar since it gained independence from France in 1960.