Voting begins in Equatorial Guinea elections

Kampala, Uganda | Xinhua | Voters in Equatorial Guinea went to the polls on Sunday morning to elect their next president and representatives in both parliamentary chambers.

Polling centers across the country opened at 8 a.m. local time for more than 400,000 eligible voters expected to cast their votes and will close at 6 p.m. local time. Voters in the capital, Malabo began to queue at polling centers half an hour before voting started, according to the Information and Press Office of Equatorial Guinea.

President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, 80, candidate of the ruling Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea, is seeking a sixth term in office. He is challenged by Buenaventura Monsuy Asumu of the Social Democratic Coalition Party and Andres Esono Ondo of the Convergence for Social Democracy.

Voters are also casting their ballots for 100 members of the Chamber of Deputies and 55 members of the Senate. The Senate is made up of 70 members but 15 are appointed by the president. They are elected to five-year terms.

Observers from some countries and international organizations are monitoring the elections.