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Abuja, Nigeria – Nigerians go to the polls for one of the most disputed presidential and legislative elections in the country 's political history, after a week – long delay in security.
About 120,000 polling stations opened at 07:00 GMT in the most populous country and Africa's largest oil producer, with results expected early next week.
Saturday's elections marked the end of a fierce campaign between two leaders. Outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari, 76, of the All Progressive Congress, and opposition candidate Atiku Abubakar, former vice president of the 72-year-old People's Democratic Party.
More than 84 million Nigerians have registered to participate in the tight vote and long queues were reported Saturday in several polling stations across the country.
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| Raymond Okoli, voter in Abuja, historic vote [Fidelis Mbah/Al Jazeera] |
Seventy-three candidates run for president – the highest number of presidential candidates in the country, with nearly 200 million inhabitants.
Fears of safety
The armed group Boko Haram had sworn to disrupt the elections, which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) postponed last Saturday to a week, just hours before the start of work.
Angry voters who had already traveled to their original towns and villages and saw major parties blaming each other for conspiring with INEC to fudge the results.
While the INEC promised voter safety during Saturday's polls, many in the agitated north said they would not venture out of their homes to vote.
"I will stay inside with my children, I do not think I'm going to vote because anything can happen," said Hadiza Idris, a resident of Maiduguri town, Al Jazeera.
Suspected members of Boko Haram attacked Geidam town on Saturday in the neighboring state of Yobe, where residents were forced to flee their homes and hide in the bush.
The attacks in the northeast are causing an ambush against a convoy of Borno State Governor Kashim Shetima as he was heading to a campaign rally. at Gamboru Ngala last week.
The attack left many people dead and several people kidnapped by suspected Boko Haram fighters.
Northeastern Nigeria has been hit by the Boko Haram campaign that has been going on for the past decade and has provoked attacks in recent months by the Islamic State of Iran and the Levant ( ISIL) in the province of West Africa. More than 20,000 people were killed by the group.
Voters also choose 360 members of the House of Representatives and 109 senators from a selection of 6,500 candidates.
Unemployment, Economy and Boko Haram
The main opposition candidate, Abubakar, is committed to the country "working again" by reviving the country's economy, while President Buhari hopes his achievements in power will will propel to a second term.
The two main candidates are Fulani Muslims from northern Nigeria, unlike in 2015, when religion and the region played a major role in determining the outcome of the elections. In 2015, Buhari was opposed to Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian.
Unemployment, the economy and the battle continues against Boko Haram dominated the campaign, but much more is at stake.
The pre-election violence overshadowed the election campaign and fears of an upsurge in violence persisted on polling day. According to civil society groups, 260 people were killed during election campaigns from October to February.
Analysts warned that the presidential and legislative elections could be one of the bloodiest in the country's history.
In 2011, electoral violence claimed the lives of nearly 1,000 people in the north following the defeat of Buhari by interim President Jonathan.
Nigeria, Africa's largest economy, has one of the fastest growing populations in the world and one of the largest populations of young people. Despite economic progress, 91 million Nigerians live in extreme poverty.
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