A crucial election has begun in the East African nation of Burundi, where President Pierre Nkurunziza is stepping aside after 15 years in charge but he will remain “paramount leader” in the country that continues to reject outside scrutiny.
Face masks and social distancing were observed as voting began after 6 a.m. but Burundi’s government has been criticized for not appearing to take the coronavirus pandemic seriously.
Ahead of the vote, government agents were accused of harassing the main opposition party, the CNL, whose leader Agathon Rwasa is believed to be in a close race with Nkurunziza’s chosen successor in the ruling CNDD-FDD, Evariste Ndayishimiye.
Some in Burundi worry that a rigged election could spark the kind of street demonstrations that marked the previous vote in 2015, when Nkurunziza decided to run for a third term that some called unconstitutional.
More than 300,000 people who fled Burundi amid the turmoil caused by the previous election remain refugees.
