BBC News:
Voting is under way in the oil-rich central African nation of Gabon where President Ali Bongo – who came to power when his father Omar died in 2009 – is hoping to win a third term.
He faces competition from 13 people.
“Gabon is not the property of the Bongos,” said main opposition candidate Albert Ondo Ossa days earlier on the campaign trail.
On Saturday he complained that many polling stations across the country lacked ballot papers bearing his name.
Mr Ondo Ossa, a former economics professor and one-time education minister, was appointed as leader the Alternance 2023 coalition just last week.
The coalition says the names of some of those who have withdrawn from the presidential race are still on the ballot paper.
As in previous general elections, there are serious concerns about the process.
Both of Mr Bongo’s prior wins were disputed as fraudulent by opponents, and this time around controversial changes have been made to voting papers just weeks before election day.
For the first time, voters are being asked to mark a single ballot with their choice of a president and MP who must belong to the same party.
Experts say this disadvantages independent candidates – notably Mr Ondo Ossa, who heads the main opposition coalition but lacks a party of his own.
Foreign media have been banned from setting foot in the country to cover Saturday’s vote, says the campaign group Reporters Without Borders.
No international election monitors from the EU or UN will be present either.
Local civil society group Tournons La Page say they will try to act as observers despite having no official accreditation.
There have been reports of delays at some voting centres, and it is not clear if the Saturday evening cut-off time will be extended.
Before Saturday’s vote a row erupted, with President Bongo accusing Mr Ondo Ossa and another opposition figure of treason.
The pair deny claims that they were recorded plotting ways to create a power struggle in Gabon and win support from foreign powers, and they have accused the government of “shameful manipulation” in a statement released by Alternance 2023.
As well as voting for their choice of president and MPs, the people of Gabon are also choosing mayors and local councillors.
Gabon has a total population of 2.3 million people and enjoys oil wealth and rich swathes of rainforest.
But the global economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic has led to declining exports of raw materials.
Back in 2018, President Bongo suffered a stroke which sidelined him for almost a year and lead to calls for him to step aside.
The following year, a failed coup attempt saw mutinying soldiers sent to prison.
