Banker Thiam elected leader of Ivory Coast opposition

Ivorian-French banker TidjaneThiam was Friday elected leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Ivory Coast, a victory which puts him in position to contest the next presidential election in 2025.

Thiam, a former boss of banking giant Credit Suisse, won with 96.5 percent of the vote against 3.2 percent for his rival, the mayor of a commune in the economic hub Abidjan, according to the final results announced on Friday. More than 6,000 delegates took part in the vote at a party congress in the capital Yamoussoukro. Thiam had the support of a large majority of the party's lawmakers.