According to a BBC article published today, Liberia simply cannot afford to hold local polls. At this point, Liberian municipal elections have not been held in 23 years. Between multiple civil wars and the government’s financial troubles, local elections have turned into a luxury the government can’t afford.
Liberia’s Supreme Court handed down a judgment that the Liberian president can appoint local mayors until the country can afford to hold elections, but that decision is being challenged by the United People’s Party, the opposition to President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s ruling party.

Tuesday morning, a tied city council race in Tieton, Washington was decided by coin flip. The matter was reported by the Yakima Herald here. For those of you unfamiliar with Tieton, WA, it is about 150 miles south east of Seattle.
Just goes to show you that the mechanisms of democracy can have immense variation. I’m tempted to suggest the Tieton approach for a replacement for the electoral college: it’s cheaper, faster, and doesn’t leave any way for candidates to claim the election was stolen.