A campaign worker hands out party flags at a rally for incumbent presidential candidate Faure Gnassingbe in Tado, Togo, April 13, 2015. (Reuters Photo)
Togo began voting today in an election expected to give President Faure Gnassingbe a third term in power, facing a divided opposition and last minute changes to the tallying of results.
Gnassingbe has been president since 2005 when his father died after 38 years in charge. Campaigning has been largely peaceful and there are no signs of the tensions that led to violence in 2005, when hundreds died after the election.
Results from the single round of voting could start to flow in tomorrow.
After overnight talks and appeals for calm, candidates agreed the election commission would not announce results based only on figures sent via an electronic system until the number is confirmed on paper, officials at the meeting told Reuters.
Gnassingbe's mandate ends on May 3, so his camp are keen to get results out quickly. The opposition had said it feared the electronic system would be used to facilitate rigging of an election delayed for 10 days to clean up voter lists.
Togo's constitution allows three terms in office, unlike Democratic Republic of Congo, where efforts to change laws to allow the president to seek a third term have led to violent protests. A bid to change the constitution for the same reason in Burkina Faso last year led to the overthrow of the president.
"I am convinced that my voice will count towards a certain change in this country. It's my dearest wish," said Afi Amegnon, 36, at a polling station in the capital.
Gnassingbe has pledged to ease poverty by pursuing the infrastructure-driven economic growth he has overseen since the 2005 violence.
Campaign slogans, dominated by puns using his first name, Faure, and the French for "strong", pledge more schools, roads and opportunities in the transport and services hub he is trying to establish in the nation of 7 million.
After voting at a school attached to a military camp, the president called for people to patiently wait for results.
"The candidates have spoken. Now it is up to the people to make their choice," he said.
After 48 years with the same family in charge, his rivals say Togo needs new leadership. Strikes by teachers and medics have in recent months turned violent.
Some 3.5 million voters will choose between Gnassingbe and four challengers, headed by official opposition leader Jean-Pierre Fabre, who came second in the last vote in 2010.
Opposition parties have complained the voter roll was full of inaccuracies that might favour the president. Fabre's camp had also said it would not accept results announced from the electronic system, warning it might lead to an uprising.
A spokesman for the UN Secretary-General appealed for any challenges to be made in the courts, not on the streets.
© Thomson Reuters 2015