Lengthy delays at the polls led voting in Democratic Republic of the Congo’s presidential election to be extended on Wednesday as the country faced steep logistical and security challenges that raised questions about credibility.
It was not clear whether balloting would extend into Thursday after the election commission said it would continue “to allow every voter until the last”.
Some 44 million people, almost half the population, are expected to vote, but many, including several million who were displaced by conflict in the vast country’s east, could struggle to cast their ballots.
The fighting has prevented 1.5 million people from registering to vote.
At stake is the credibility of the vote in one of Africa’s largest nations and one whose mineral resources are increasingly crucial to the global economy.
DR Congo has a history of disputed elections that can turn violent and there is already a deep crisis of confidence in the country’s institutions.
Analysts say any questionable result could not only drive the country further into turmoil but could have implications in a region marked by military takeovers.
“In time of coup d’etat and autocracy in Africa, this election is an opportunity to reinforce a unique democracy in central Africa,” said Fred Bauma, executive director of Congolese research institute Ebuteli.
On Wednesday, voters lined up for hours waiting to cast their ballots.
“When you wake up in the morning you’re hoping for good things, good work, and I want security,” Raymond Yuma said in the capital, Kinshasa. He sat beside three other people on a bench waiting in line for the doors to open. None of their voting cards was legible.
In eastern Congo, people said they were not finding their names on voting lists.
“The voters displayed on lists at the polling station are fewer than those who are lining up. I can’t find my name on the list and this could cause scuffles here because I also want to vote,” said Jules Kambale at a polling station in Goma.
Waiting for polls to open during the more than two-hour delay, people grew agitated and began arguing, particularly in the capital. Even after stations opened, many were frustrated at the slow process. At one voting station, an angry crowd tried to push past police officers in riot gear guarding the gates of the centre.
A major concern is that ink on voting cards has smudged, making many illegible. That means voters could be turned away. In addition, the voter registration list has not been properly audited.
“The organisation of the elections raises lots of doubt regarding the credibility, the transparency and the reliability of the results,” said Bienvenu Matumo, a member of LUCHA, a local rights group.
A candidate needs a majority of votes in the first round to win.
President Felix Tshisekedi is seeking his second and final five-year term, running against 26 other names on the ballot. His main rival appears to be Moise Katumbi, the former governor of Katanga province and a millionaire businessman whose campaign in 2018 was thwarted by the previous regime of former president Joseph Kabila.
While voting in Lubumbashi, Mr Katumbi asked the population to stay at polling stations and monitor the results until the end. “We must count each ballot and results must be displayed. The only result that we will accept will be the one displayed on each polling station,” he said.
Still, the opposition remains fractured, making Mr Tshisekedi the likely favourite.
The son of a late, popular opposition figure, he has spent much of his presidency trying to consolidate power over state institutions and working to overcome a crisis of legitimacy after a contested election five years ago.
Nicolas Teindas, the director for the international observation mission for the Carter Centre, said the sooner the voting is finished the better, because it becomes challenging to manage people’s expectations.
“In the end people want to know who is their president,” he said.
