LIBREVILLE – Voters in Gabon on Sunday awaited the results of the central African nation’s presidential election, which the country’s military rulers hope will legitimize their grip on power after they staged a coup in 2023.

The interim president, Gen. Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, who led the coup, looked set to win Saturday’s election by a wide margin, analysts said. Observers said he had representatives at the majority of the more than 3,000 polling stations where elections were held, an indication of his campaigning reach.

Local observers also deemed the conduct of the poll satisfactory in nearly all the polling stations monitored. Local media reported that the interim president had most of the votes so far collated in the small number of voting stations that have announced results.

Oligui Nguema is in the presidential race with seven other candidates, including former Prime Minister Alain Claude Bilie-By-Nze, his main challenger. Bilie-By-Nze recently told The Associated Press that Oligui Nguema took advantage of state resources to push his campaign. The government denies this.

It’s Gabon’s first election since the 2023 military coup ended a political dynasty that lasted over 50 years.

Some 920,000 voters, including over 28,000 overseas, were registered to vote in the election, seen as crucial for the country where a third of the population of 2.3 million people lives in poverty despite its vast oil wealth.

At least 94.8% of the polling stations observed operated under satisfactory conditions, while the transparency of operations was deemed satisfactory in 98.6% of cases, the Gabonese Civil Society Organizations Observation Mission said late Saturday.

The interim president had his representatives present in 69.6% of the polling stations observed while Bilie-By-Nze’s representation stood at just 8.2%, the observers said.

Oligui Nguema, 50, the former head of the republican guard, toppled President Ali Bongo Ondimba nearly two years ago. He hopes to consolidate his grip on power for a seven-year term in office.

After casting his ballot on Saturday in the capital, Libreville, the interim president said he felt proud of the citizens seeking to “turn the page to join the new Republic.”

“May the best man win,” he said.

In a video message shared after he voted in the north of the country, Bilie-By-Nze said he was concerned that unused voting cards could be used for potential electoral fraud.

Voters who spoke to the AP were divided on how the military has performed since taking over power in 2023, with most saying they have failed in their promises.

“I’m telling you that for me, the military has failed,” said Antoine Nkili, a 27-year-old unemployed man with a master’s degree in law. “They promised to reform the institutions, but they haven’t. Instead, they’ve enriched themselves.”

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Asadu reported from Abuja, Nigeria.