"I congratulate Joseph Boakai on his election to be the next president of Liberia," Biden said in a statement. "I also want to commend President Weah for respecting the will of the people, and putting patriotism above politics."
Biden said the elections "demonstrated Liberians' commitment to making their voices heard through the ballot box," adding that he looked "forward to working together to continue deepening the ties between our nations and people in the years ahead."
The U.S. President said in this elections, Liberians "have set a clear example for West Africa and the entire world."
"Democracy is a powerful tool for progress, and democracies can deliver for our people."
Boakai, a former Vice President, was on Monday declared winner of Liberia's presidential election — beating incumbent George Weah — the National Electoral Commission (NEC) said after completing the ballot count.
The 78-year-old won with 50.64% of the vote, against 49.36% of the vote for former international football star Weah, Davidetta Browne Lansanah, president of the commission, told reporters.
Boakai won with only a 20,567-vote margin.
Weah had already conceded defeat on Friday evening, based on the results of more than 99.98% of the polling stations.
The outgoing president and former football star won praise from abroad on Monday for conceding and promoting a non-violent transition in a region marred by coups.
"Liberians have once again demonstrated that democracy is alive in the ECOWAS region and that change is possible through peaceful means," the Economic Community of West African States said in a statement.
Since 2020, ECOWAS states have seen abrupt regime changes with military forces seizing power by force in four of the fifteen member countries: Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso and Niger.
The election six years ago of Weah — the first African footballer to win both FIFA's World Player of the Year trophy and the Ballon d'Or — had sparked high hopes of change in Liberia, which is still reeling from back-to-back civil wars and the 2014-2016 Ebola epidemic.
But critics have accused his government of corruption and him of failing to keep a promise to improve the lives of the poorest.
While his party lost, "Liberia has won," Weah had said on radio.
Weah said he had spoken to the man he called the "president-elect" to congratulate him and urged his own supporters to accept the election result.
Some information in this report came from Agence France-Press (AFP)
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