LIBREVILLE, Gabon — The oil-rich central African nation of Gabon on Saturday voted in the country’s first legislative and local elections since a 2023 military coup ended a 50-year-old political dynasty.
More than 900,000 Gabonese are eligible to elect parliament members and local councilors to replace officials appointed by the military following the coup.
Gen. Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema had toppled President Ali Bongo Ondimba, who was accused of irresponsible governance, and in April, won the presidential election that signaled a return to constitutional democracy.
Polls closed on Saturday evening, with vote counting beginning immediately after that at each polling station. Observers were allowed to observe the operations. The first results were expected Sunday.
In Libreville, voting began with a slight delay because of early morning rain. Voters have been turning out since 8 a.m. in lines outside polling stations.
The vote unfolded mostly peacefully. Just in the commune of Ntoum, a suburb of Libreville, voting was canceled in one constituency because of tensions between candidates.
The main parties in the running are the Gabonese Democratic Party — the former ruling party that won every political election since it was founded in 1968, until it was o