Polls have opened in in a a comfortable win.
Oligui Nguema, who led a coup in August 2023 and is the transitional president, has been leading in opinion polls.
He is campaigning on an anti-corruption ticket. He has also emphasized the need to break from the dynasty of Omar Bongo Ondimba and his son and successor Ali Bongo, who together ruled Gabon for more than 50 years.
Oligui Nguema has already predicted a “historic victory” in the election.
“The builder is here, the special candidate, the one you called,” he said Thursday among the music and dancing at his closing rally in the capital Libreville.
Bilie By Nze, his main opponent, has cast himself as the candidate for a “complete rupture”.
He has accused Oligui Nguema, who led the Republican Guard in the Bongo years, of representing a continuity of the old system.
Around 920,000 voters are expected to cast their ballots in the election, being contested by eight candidates.
Polling stations closing at 6 p.m. local time with final results expected on Monday.
Why does the election matter?
It is Gabon’s first election since the 2023 coup saw the Bongo dynasty fall from power.
The former French colony of 2.3 million people is voting at a time of high unemployment, regular power and water shortages and heavy government debt.
Crucial minerals, including manganese, as well as oil are important for the economic future of the small West African nation.
But the 2023 coup brought instability to the country, damaging its reputation for stability, worrying investors.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar
The post Gabon’s junta chief expected to win election as polls open appeared first on Deutsche Welle.
