Sawt Falasteen - Central African Republic president seeks third term in election

Around 2.3 million people are eligible to vote, with parliamentary, municipal and regional polls taking place at the same time.

Escorted by members of the presidential guard and Russia's Wagner paramilitary group, Touadera arrived at a high school to cast his own ballot.

He urged people to vote "to allow our country to develop, to allow our country to regain peace and security".

"It's a very important issue," Touadera, 68, told reporters.

Streets in the capital Bangui were quiet, with armoured vehicles of the UN peacekeeping mission MINUSCA deployed at road junctions.

Heavy security was posted outside voting stations, which were due to close at 1700 GMT, and helicopters flew overhead at a school near where Touadera was voting, while a long queue had formed.

Since Touadera was first elected in 2016, in the middle of a civil war, the CAR has seen unrest ease despite feuds between armed groups and the government in some regions.

"We need a leader elected by the people, not someone who takes power by force," teacher Julie Odjoubi, 44, said, her left thumb stained with purple ink to show she had voted.

- 'Respect the choice ' -

Touadera is in pole position to win in a seven-strong field, after a new constitution was adopted in 2023 allowing him to seek a third term.

Part of the opposition has called for a boycott of the poll, condemning it as a sham and the lack of political dialogue.

Provisional results from the presidential election are expected on January 5.

The main challenger to Touadera for the presidency Anicet-Georges Dologuele voted at the town hall in Bangui earlier Sunday. He came in second place in the last two elections.

Afterwards, he expressed "confidence and humility", calling on voters "to make the right choice so as not to regret it tomorrow and over the next seven years".

"I will respect the choice of the ballot box, since I’m going to win," he told reporters.

More than 1,700 national and international observers have been accredited for Sunday's polls, the electoral body said.

Touadera was re-elected in 2020, in a vote marred by allegations of fraud and an uprising by six rebel groups.

The rebels were pushed back with the help of the Rwandan army and mercenaries from the Wagner paramilitary group.

The CAR ballot, along with Guinea's presidential vote on Sunday, caps a packed year of elections across Africa.

- Security -

During the campaign, Dologuele, who came second in the last two elections, and another main opposition figure and former prime minister Henri-Marie Dondra were prevented from flying to the provinces to hold rallies.

While Touadera held rallies in Bangui stadium, his top two critics had to make do with neighbourhood walkabouts and events in schools or their party offices.

According to political scientist and civil society figure Paul Crescent Beninga, "orchestrated" rallies were held across the country to plant the idea that Touadera enjoys widespread support.

Dologuele and Dondra also faced the prospect of being barred from standing over allegations they held another country's citizenship.

Touadera's constitutional change introduced the requirement that candidates be single nationals.

Although courts rejected the bans, Dologuele was stripped of his Central African passport in October even after giving up his French citizenship. He has filed a complaint to the UN's human rights office.

"But despite their candidacies being approved, many... remain sceptical about the point of voting and the transparency of the elections," Beninga said.

Touadera has boasted of improvements in security, paved roads, public lighting on major avenues and renovated rainwater drainage canals in the capital.

But life for many in the CAR -- 71 percent of whom live below the poverty line -- remains precarious, with a lack of basic services, an absence of passable roads, widespread unemployment, poor training and a steadily rising cost of living.

Nearly 90 percent of the country is now under government authority, compared to 80 percent being held by armed groups four years ago, analysts have told AFP.

B.Khalifa--SF-PST