Supporters celebrate after Hery Rajaonarimampianina was declared president of Madagascar by an electoral courthouse in Antananarivo on January 17, 2014. Rajaonarimampianina, a former finance minister backed by strongman Andry Rajoelina, was Friday declared president of Madagascar following elections to restore democracy on the island nation. The December 20 elections came four years after Rajoelina seized power in 2009, with his rival Marc Ravalomanana fleeing into exile to South Africa, sparking a prolonged crisis that left the country isolated and its economy hobbled.