Voters in Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, head to the polls Saturday to cast ballots in presidential and parliamentary elections. President Muhammadu Buhari, who is in his second term in office, is not eligible to run again after serving the maximum of eight years in office. There are three main presidential candidates running to succeed him and the race is seen as the most competitive since the country switched from military rule to democracy in 1999. Here is what to know about the elections:
Polling stations are open from 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. local time, however, anyone in line by 2:30 p.m. will be allowed to cast a ballot.More than 93 million Nigerians are registered to vote and can cast ballots in about 176,600 polling stations across the country.Eighteen candidates are running to succeed President Buhari.
Candidates for a seat in the House of Representatives or the Senate need only win a simple majority of votes in their district.Nigeria is facing double-digit inflation, a currency shortage, and security troubles, including an Islamist insurgency in the northeast and separatist violence in the southeast. All three of the main presidential candidates have made improving the economy and strengthening security their main priorities.Nigeria has a long history of electoral fraud.
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