92-year-old leader poised for 8th term

Cameroonians voted Sunday in an election expected to return 92-year-old Paul Biya, the world’s oldest serving head of state, to office after 43 years in power.

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Cameroonian President Paul Biya, 92, who is seeking an 8th term, casts his ballot while his wife Chantal watches during the election in Yaounde on Sunday. REUTERS

(REUTERS)

AFP journalists saw voters crowding outside polling stations during the day in the capital Yaounde before they closed in the early evening, with an electoral official declaring the ballot had gone “calmly”.

Mr Biya faced 11 opponents, including former employment minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary, 79, who generated unexpected enthusiasm among voters in the central African nation, where half the population is under 20.

Most of the 8 million Cameroonians who were eligible to vote in the one-round election had only known one ruler in their lifetime.

Mr Biya has been in power since 1982 and has won every election in the past 20 years with more than 70% of the vote.