Voting is underway in Namibia in what could be the most competitive election since independence from white-ruled South Africa 34 years ago.
Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah is seeking to become the country’s first female president.
She is running on behalf of the ruling South West African People’s Organization (Swapo), to replace Hage Geingob, who died in February after nine years in power.
But high unemployment, poverty, inequality and corruption allegations have eroded support for the party.
Nandi-Ndaitwah’s main opponent is Panduleni Itula of the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) party, as well as 14 other candidates.
Local media showed long lines at schools and other voting centers as voting began on Wednesday morning.
Voting begins at 07:00 local time (05:00 GMT) and ends at 21:00.
Swapo has been in power since leading the country to independence in 1990.
A candidate needs more than 50% of the vote to win outright, otherwise there will be a runoff between the two leading candidates.
Nandi-Ndaitwa voted in the capital Windhoek as polls began, urging Namibians to go out and vote, saying it would “have an impact for the next five years of your life”.
She rails against the traditional and male-dominated political culture in this country.
But she is a trusted leader who has served in high government office for a quarter of a century.
Itula, a former dentist and lawyer, won 29% of the vote in the last election in 2019, losing to Swapo leader Geingob, who got 56%.
He said it was an important day for Namibia’s democracy as he cast his vote in the capital.
Namibia is currently led by interim President Nangolo Mbumba, who took power in February after Geigob’s death, but he will not run.
Analysts say the result could depend on young voters, who make up more than half of the electorate.
Namibians are also selecting new members of parliament.
Namibia is a large and peaceful country with a sparse population of about 3 million people, about half of whom are eligible to vote.
