Former world football star George Weah wins seat in Liberia's Senate

Former soccer player George Weah of Liberia attends the Champions League draw ceremony at Monaco's Grimaldi Forum in Monte Carlo August 30, 2012. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard

MONROVIA (Reuters) - Former world football player of the year George Weah has won a seat in Liberia's Senate to represent the capital, defeating the son of the president and boosting his political fortunes ahead of a presidential election in 2017.

Weah won the Montserrado County seat that includes the capital Monrovia with 78 percent of the vote, defeating Robert Sirleaf, the son of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia's National Elections Commission said late on Saturday.