Togo’s President Faure Gnassingbe on Monday hailed a crushing election victory that gave him a fourth term in office, as his main rival insisted he had won and called on people to “defend” their votes.

The incumbent leader took 72 percent of the vote in the first round of Saturday’s presidential poll, the election commission said overnight, far ahead of former prime minister Agbeyome Kodjo on 18 percent.

The opposition alleged widespread fraud including ballot stuffing and the use of fake polling stations to skew the results in Gnassingbe’s favour.  The widely expected win extends more than a half century of dynastic rule over the former French colony by Gnassingbe’s family despite broad disillusion over its failure to drag many out of poverty.

“The truth has just come to light after the announcement of the results which place us far ahead of our adversaries,” Gnassingbe, 53, told celebrating supporters. “Those who wanted to get agitated got agitated, they announced imaginary figures, they proclaimed themselves winners… We remained calm.”

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Gnassingbe has led the country of eight million people since taking over in 2005 following the death of his father Gnassingbe Eyadema, who ruled with an iron fist for 38 years. Kodjo, who served as premier under Gnassingbe’s father, alleged major irregularities and insisted he was the true “democratically elected president of the republic of Togo”.

“I appeal to the population across all of the country and in diaspora to resolutely defend the truth of the ballot boxes,” he said in an audio message disseminated on Whatsapp. “I appeal for restraint and neutrality from the security forces.”

In a statement, Kodjo’s campaign chief urged Togolese to “enter into resistance” until the “will expressed by the voters in favour of change is respected”. Those pleas appeared to have little impact in the opposition-supporting district of Be in the capital Lome as life continued as normal on Monday.