Porto-Novo [Benin], April 13: Voting was under way in Benin's presidential election with long-serving Finance Minister Romuald Wadagni expected to win in the absence of a major challenger.
Polls opened at 7am (06:00 GMT) on Sunday and would close at 4pm (15:00 GMT). More than 7.9 million people are registered to vote, including 62,000 in the diaspora.
Backed by the two main parties in the governing coalition and the outgoing president, Patrice Talon, Wadagni, a 49-year-old former Deloitte executive, is being challenged by Paul Hounkpe, an opposition figure and former culture minister whose campaign has been low-key.
The member of the Cowry Forces for an Emerging Benin party got on the ballot with help from lawmakers of the two main ruling coalition parties after they refused to endorse the candidacy of Rene Agbodjo, head of the opposition Democrats party.
Talon, 67, is barred from running again after two terms in office and is expected to step down with a legacy of mixed results: economic growth, which reached 7 percent last year, but also a clampdown on the opposition and his critics. In December, a group of military officers also tried and failed to overthrow Talon's government.
The new president will have to address major challenges, including a huge gap between the poor and well-off.
Source: Qatar Tribune
