View source for Unity Party (Liberia)

{{short description|Political party in Liberia}}
{{more citations needed|date=September 2017}}
{{Infobox political party
| name = Unity Party
| abbreviation = UP
| logo = Logo of the Unity Party (Liberia).png
| logo_size = 175px
| colorcode = {{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}
| chairperson = Luther Tarpeh
| leader2_title = Senate Leader
| leader2_name = [[Joseph Boakai]]
| leader3_title = House Leader
| founder = [[Edward Kesselly]]
| founded = 1984
| slogan = ''One Nation, One People, With Liberty And Justice For All''
| ideology = [[Liberal democracy]]<br />[[Economic liberalism]]
| position = [[Centrism|Centre]] to [[Centre-right politics|centre-right]]
| international = [[International Democrat Union]]
| affiliation1_title = Continental affiliation
| affiliation1 = [[Democrat Union of Africa]]
| colours = Green and maroon
| seats1_title = [[Senate of Liberia|Seats in the Senate]]
| seats1 = {{Composition bar|13|30|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
| seats2_title = [[House of Representatives of Liberia|Seats in the House]]
| seats2 = {{Composition bar|11|73|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
| seats3_title = [[Pan African Parliament]]
| seats3 = {{Composition bar|2|5|hex=#026536}}
| website = http://www.theunitypartyliberia.org
| country = Liberia
}}
The '''Unity Party''' ('''UP''') is a [[List of political parties in Liberia|political party]] in [[Liberia]] that was started in 1984 by [[Edward Kesselly|Edward B. Kesselly]], also its first standard bearer. The Unity Party was founded in [[Buchanan, Liberia|Buchanan]], [[Grand Bassa County]], on 27 July 1985.<ref>"UP To Do Formal Launching Tomorrow". <nowiki>[Monrovia]</nowiki> ''SunTimes'', 1985-07-26: 1/13.</ref> The Unity Party participated in the [[1985 Liberian general election|first elections]] after the [[People's Redemption Council|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]].

In the [[1997 Liberian general election|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 of Liberia|House of Representatives]] and three of 26 available in the [[Senate of Liberia|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 (Liberian politician)|Charles Taylor]] would return to [[First Liberian Civil War|war]] if defeated.

Unity Party candidate Sirleaf won the [[Liberia elections, 2005|2005 presidential elections]], defeating [[George Weah]] of the [[Congress for Democratic Change]] (CDC) in a [[Two-round system|runoff]]. The party also won three seats in the [[Senate of Liberia|Senate]] and 8 in the [[House of Representatives of Liberia|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.<ref>[http://www.theliberianjournal.com/index.php?st=news&sbst=details&rid=974&comesOfTheHome=1 UP, LAP, LUP Mergedâ€[<i>sic</i>]¦Ellen Says It's[<i>sic</i>] A Dream Come True], ''The Liberian Journal'', Jimmey C. Fahngon, April 2, 2009</ref>

The party lost in the runoff of the [[2017 Liberian general election]] to ex-footballer and previous runoff candidate [[George Weah]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.necliberia.org/results2017 |title=NEC Liberia :: Results 2017 |website=www.necliberia.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171014223139/http://www.necliberia.org/results2017/ |archive-date=2017-10-14}}</ref> On 13 January 2018, the party expelled<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-42681795|title=Liberia's Sirleaf expelled from her party|date=2018|work=BBC News|access-date=2018-01-15|language=en-GB}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-42681795|title = Ellen Johnson Sirleaf: Liberia's president expelled from her party|work = BBC News|date = 14 January 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://thenewdawnliberia.com/new-faces-in-up/|title=New faces in UP|date=September 9, 2020|author=E. J. Nathaniel Daygbor|publisher=The New Dawn Liberia|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20220428055619/https://thenewdawnliberia.com/new-faces-in-up/|archive-date=April 28, 2022}}</ref>

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 [[Elections in Liberia|Liberia's electoral history]].

== Party Leadership ==

Former Vice President Boakai remains the Standard Bearer of the Party and was the leading opposition contender for the 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 ==

=== Presidential elections ===
{| class=wikitable style=text-align:center
! rowspan="2" |Election
! rowspan="2" |Candidate
!Votes
!%
!Votes
!%
! rowspan="2" |Result
|-
! colspan="2" |First round
! colspan="2" |Second round
|-
! [[1985 Liberian general election|1985]]
| [[Edward Kesselly]]
| 57,273
| 11.04%
| -
| -
| '''Lost''' {{Nay}}
|-
![[1997 Liberian general election|1997]]
| rowspan="3" |[[Ellen Johnson Sirleaf]]
|59,557
|9.58%
| -
| -
|'''Lost''' {{Nay}}
|-
![[2005 Liberian general election|2005]]
|192,326
|19.75%
|478,526
|59.40%
|'''Won''' {{Y}}
|-
![[2011 Liberian general election|2011]]
|530,020
|43.93%
|607,618
|90.71%
|'''Won''' {{Y}}
|-
![[2017 Liberian general election|2017]] 
|rowspan=2 |[[Joseph Boakai]]
|446,716
|28.76%
|457,579
|38.46%
|'''Lost''' {{Nay}}
|-
![[2023 Liberian general election|2023]] 
|796,961
|43.44%
|814,481
|50.64%
|'''Won''' {{Y}}
|}

=== House of Representatives elections ===
{| class=wikitable style=text-align:center
!Election
!Vote
!%
!Seats
!'''+/–'''
!'''Position'''
|-
![[1985 Liberian general election|1985]]
|57,273	
|11.04%
| align="left" |{{Composition bar|2|64|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|New
|{{increase}} 4th
|-
![[1997 Liberian general election|1997]]
|59,557
|9.57%
| align="left" |{{Composition bar|7|120|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{increase}} 1
|{{increase}} 2nd
|-
![[2005 Liberian general election|2005]]
|123,373
|12.49%
| align="left" |{{Composition bar|8|64|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{increase}} 1
|{{decrease}} 4th
|-
![[2011 Liberian general election|2011]]
|226,291
|17.76%
| align="left" |{{Composition bar|24|73|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{increase}} 2
|{{increase}} 1st
|-
![[2017 Liberian general election|2017]]
|220,508
|14.32%
|{{Composition bar|20|73|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{decrease}} 4
|{{decrease}} 2nd
|-
![[2023 Liberian general election|2023]]
|237,931
|13.09%
|{{Composition bar|11|73|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{decrease}} 9
|{{steady}} 2nd
|}

=== Senate elections ===
{| class=wikitable style=text-align:center
!'''Election'''
!'''Votes'''
!'''%'''
!'''Seats'''
!'''+/–'''
!'''Position'''
|-
![[1985 Liberian general election|1985]]
|57,273	
|11.04%
| align="left" |{{Composition bar|1|26|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|New
|{{increase}} 4th
|-
![[1997 Liberian general election|1997]]
|59,557
|9.57%
|{{Composition bar|3|26|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{increase}} 2
|{{increase}} 2nd
|-
![[Liberian general election, 2005|2005]]
|222,705
|12.93%
|{{Composition bar|4|30|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{increase}} 1
|{{steady}} 2nd
|-
![[2011 Liberian general election|2011]]
|164,851
|12.85%
|{{Composition bar|10|30|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{decrease}} 1
|{{increase}} 1st
|-
![[2014 Liberian Senate election|2014]]
|47,123
|10.33%
|{{Composition bar|8|30|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{decrease}} 2
|{{steady}} 1st
|-
![[2020 Liberian Senate election|2020]]
|354,898<br/>{{small|(As part of [[Collaborating Political Parties|CPP]])}}
|40.27%
|{{Composition bar|6|30|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{decrease}} 2
|{{steady}} 1st
|-
![[2023 Liberian general election|2023]]
|218,138
|12.04%
|{{Composition bar|3|30|{{party color|Unity Party (Liberia)}}}}
|{{decrease}} 3
|{{decrease}} 2nd
|}
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://archive.today/20070310205730/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-1866394,00.html Weah cries foul in Liberia's presidential play-off], Sam Knight and agencies, ''[[The Sunday Times]]'' Online, November 10, 2005

{{Liberian political parties}}

__FORCETOC__

[[Category:Political parties in Liberia]]
[[Category:Political parties established in 1984]]
[[Category:Buchanan, Liberia]]