No politician is taller than the late Senator Yormie Johnson, the uncontroversial political godfather of Pyj-vote-rich Nimba County, the acronym for his name, and no more taller politician in the king of modern Liberian political history.
Due to his influence, PYJ presented the Liberian presidency to Silver President, Madame Ellen Johnson Sirleef, George Manne Weir and Joseph Nyuma Boachey, who currently holds the post. Anyone who threw his weight won the presidential election. PYJ had made countless senators and representatives in his hometown of Nimba, so he embraced Nimba with his grip.
With official campaigns for Nimba County byelections approaching the conclusion, citizens are eager to elect others in place of the fallen Sen. Jormie Johnson, who passed away in late November 2024.
The entire election process is said to have settled down with the closure of one of the most intense political campaigns in Nimbha’s history.
Many thought it was a test for Vice President Jeremiah Kung to see if he still maintained supremacy in the absence of Senator Johnson.
There are seven candidates competing for a single seat, including representatives of Samuel G. Kogal from Nimba District 5. Edith Gonglow Wey, former Principal of Nimba. Former Nimbha District 4 representative, Cllr. Garrison Yelle; Mantinokei Tinban, former representative of Ninba District 9. Mark Gublinwon, former Nimbha County inspector. Wonkay Ferngaro and George Gampal.
The campaign quickly took the trend of ethnicity, especially between two main candidates of the Gio tribe, Kogar, and Mano Madam Gongloe Weh.
Supported by the Vice President of Liberia Eremi Akpan Kong and almost all local authorities of Nimbha, Kogal’s camp hopes that the Senate’s position will be split between the two major ethnic groups of Nimbha. Dan/Gio and Mano.
They argued that Senator Nyan Swain is a man in Mano, so the next seat should be reserved for the Dan/GIO population.
VP Koung said in a campaign message in Tappita that when Nimba acquired county status in 1964, President Tubman ordered Johnny Voker to be Senator Nimba and also designated others as the second senator.
He said the late Johnny Voker had since chosen the elderly Gblorzuo Toweh as another senator, and made two senators.
Koung explained from there that the representatives of the Senate home were always one mano and one Dan/Gio.
In 1985, Edward Schutt won the Senate seat of the late Hillary Gunble. Due to solidarity among the citizens, Edward Soccer resigned, abandoned the post, and Gumbull became the senator.
Furthermore, in 1997, George Colcole (Mano) and one Margaret Kama (GIO) were elected to the Senate of Nimbah, dispelling rumors that Margaret became Nimbah’s first female senator, dismissing rumors that the woman had not previously become Nimbah’s senator.
In particular, in a recent election group in 2011, Madame Edith Gongrow Way infiltrated the election process from President Sirleef to give the opportunity to Adolphus Doro, who was considered a favorite of the election.
He said in Nimbha’s politics that the role of the Godfather had a major impact on decisions that began with Johnny Voker, so he would be a coward who would sit and make decisions that would bring together the citizens.
“Oldman Johnny Voker didn’t decide on the tribe’s line. His decision to bring in Oldman Toure was to keep Nimba United,” he said.
In this election, he said that the Senate position should be given a chance to balance between the two major tribes.
“In this 2024 election, both tribes voted for Nyan Tweien despite the presence of Samuel Kogal, a major competitor at the time,” he said.
Vice President Koun isn’t the only one who promotes the political balance of the Senate home between the two major tribes.
Madame Mary Gonrepa, former city of Sanniferry, was a leading supporter of Edith Gongrow Way in previous elections, this time campaigning for Congressman Coger, preaching the same political balance in the Senate.
“This election is about women’s representation, but it’s about maintaining our county and balancing the Senate equation between the two tribes,” she said.
Another female opinion leader, Atty. Former candidate for the 2023 election, Sondda Gepia Wilson cited Nimbha’s unity and called on citizens to vote for Kogaar MPs.
“Our concern is that we can stand together as a undivided county, not as a women’s solidarity,” she said.
On Friday, April 18th, 2025, Nimba County Principal Kou Meepe Gono gathered the chiefs and elders as well as the female leaders of her residence to give Cogar all their support.
She used the opportunity to distribute autobags to district trustees in Nimba County.
The Gongloe-Weh campaign, fully supported by the Coalition of Democrat Change (CDC), which includes former Montserrado representatives Acarous Gray, Yekeh Kolubah and Junior Cole, joined the final phase of the campaign on Saturday, April 19, 2025, attacked the city of Janta.
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All views from the Korn Deputy and Supporters have shown that Madame Gongrow Wei’s popularity remains high among her supporters, particularly in the urban areas of Nimbha, explaining her to be open and speaks for Nimbha’s interests.
“We’re here to bring voters to vote for Edith, so women’s voices will be heard in Senate homes,” said women’s advocate Henrietta Myrtle.
However, while we are rarely asked about the remaining five candidates in the campaign process, some citizens speculate that it could be brought in to reduce the votes at the two main candidates’ bases.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere before the election appears calm. Candidates have deployed voting watchers at various polling stations to arrive in the county on April 22, 2025 with buses filled with Election Commission staff and carry out the election process.
The Liberian National Police and security equipment have also been deployed since the campaign began.
Some Nimbhas believe that Jeremiah Kupang Kong’s loss will hamper his political weight in 2029 and take away the county from the opportunity to maintain his vice president.
Alas, beneath the surface of the fight for tribal equity or hegemony is perhaps a more intense political battle between George Ware’s CDC and the ruling unified party.
