BANGUI – On Sunday, citizens of the Central African Republic headed to the polls to cast their votes in a significant election that will determine the next president and federal lawmakers. The current president, Faustin Archange Touadéra, is anticipated to secure a third term, having made efforts to stabilize the nation with the assistance of Russian mercenaries.

President Touadéra is recognized as one of Russia’s staunchest allies on the African continent. Experts suggest that his potential re-election would likely reinforce Russia’s security and economic foothold in the region, even as questions arise over the involvement of Russian mercenaries in various African nations.

The Central African Republic was one of the pioneering nations in Africa to accept the presence of Russian-backed forces, as Moscow aimed to bolster the country’s government and combat armed factions. However, this year has seen rising tensions due to Moscow’s intent to replace the private Wagner mercenary group with the Russian military unit known as Africa Corps.

This election is notable for its scale, with approximately 2.4 million registered voters participating in a comprehensive ballot that includes presidential, legislative, regional, and municipal elections.

Despite the importance of the event, the day began with some hitches. Voting started an hour behind schedule in several polling stations, particularly in the outskirts of the capital, Bangui. Additionally, some voters faced difficulties, unable to locate their names on the electoral rolls or identify where they were supposed to vote.

“When we arrived, no one was ready. With these delays, we risk voting until 8 p.m.,” said Barthélemy Wadenguende, a voter in Bangui.

Provisional results are expected in a week’s time. A runoff will be held if no presidential candidate gets more than 50% of the votes cast.

Touadéra faces challenges from six candidates, including prominent opposition figures Anicet-Georges Dologuélé and Henri-Marie Dondra, both former prime ministers. The election is being held without the main opposition coalition, the Republican Bloc for the Defense of the Constitution, which said in October that it will boycott the election after denouncing what it called an unequal political environment. Neither Dologuélé nor Dondra are part of it.

Analysts say Touadéra is a clear favorite after consolidating his control of state institutions in recent years, and due to the absence of strong opposition.

Backed by Russia, he has hinged his campaign on efforts to achieve peace, stability and economic recovery in the country of about 5.5 million people, long battered by conflict.

The landlocked country has been plagued by fighting between pro-government forces and armed groups, particularly since 2013 when predominantly Muslim rebels seized power and forced then President François Bozizé from office. A 2019 peace deal only partially lessened the fighting, and some of the 14 armed groups that signed it later withdrew from the agreement and continued their fighting.

“Our country has suffered greatly from brutal regime changes, a cycle that repeats itself every ten years. I call on the people of the Central African Republic to choose the stability of institutions and a prosperous Central African Republic,” Touadéra told The Associated Press in a recent interview.

Touadéra’s closest challenger is believed to be Dologuélé, a candidate in the 2016 and 2020 elections who has promised in his campaigns to “restore a damaged Central African Republic.” His priorities include sustained peace and economic recovery based on agriculture and other key sectors.

“President Touadéra destroyed everything. Our programme is a solid summary to get the country out of poverty. What country is this that produces nothing and exports almost nothing, except beer? We must revive the economy,” he said in a recent interview.

Analysts say the most important factor for voters is the country’s security situation.

The United Nations peacekeeping mission, MINUSCA, present in the country since 2014, has been crucial with election logistics in the past. It currently has around 14,000 military personnel and 3,000 police members who will help guard election sites.

The vast but sparsely populated nation is crisscrossed by dense forests, rivers and bad roads, and the electoral body faced challenges getting election materials to some hard-to-reach communities.

In November, the U.N. Security Council extended the mission by a year but said its presence would scale down due to budget constraints.

“Because of the peace deals, United Nations peacekeeping efforts and security support from Wagner and from the Rwandans, the country is in a more secure place than it was during the last electoral cycle in 2020,” said Lewis Mudge, the Central Africa director at Human Rights Watch.