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ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) - Ivory Coast's long-delayed presidential election will be held Nov. 30, a top electoral official said Monday, setting a vote seen as a key step to restoring the once-stable West African country to a functioning democracy after a bitter civil war.
Electoral commission chief Robert Mambe Beugre made the announcement after a Cabinet meeting presided over by President Laurent Gbagbo.
Gbagbo's initial five-year term officially expired in October 2005, but he stayed in power because of the civil conflict, citing a constitutional clause that allows the head of state to extend his time in office if required by war or crisis.
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