CONAKRY, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Guinea's presidential election took place on Sunday in an atmosphere of peace, social calm and stability, despite a few isolated difficulties reported.
This assessment is widely shared by political actors, electoral authorities, and national and international observers.
The majority of polling stations opened around 7:00 a.m. local time (0700 GMT). Carrying their voter cards, Guinean citizens turned out in large numbers to fulfill their civic duty, with no major incidents reported.
According to data from the voter register of the General Directorate of Elections (DGE), about 6.8 million voters, residing both in Guinea and abroad, were registered for the presidential poll. The country has about 24,000 polling stations across more than 300 electoral constituencies.
More than 12,000 national and international election observers were accredited to monitor the electoral process in a transparent manner and in strict compliance with existing electoral laws.
All nine candidates in the race, including one woman -- Makale Camara representing the Front for National Alliance -- fulfilled their civic duty by voting at their respective polling stations, notably in various districts of Conakry,the country's capital.
Interviewed by the media, several candidates called for calm, peace and responsible voting, while urging voters to support their respective policy platforms.
"This marks the final phase of a process that began more than a month ago," said Abdoulaye Yero Balde, president of the Democratic Front of Guinea, adding that "this decisive moment will shape Guinea's future for the years to come."
Reviewing the conduct of the voting operations, DGE Director Djenabou Toure stated that based on information collected by her services, the voter turnout is estimated at around 85 percent at the close of polling stations.
"Results are reaching us gradually, both from within the country and from abroad," she said, noting that the 378 administrative vote-tabulation commissions are actively working on compiling partial results.
"The real champion is the people of Guinea, who turned out massively to the polls to choose their candidate," she added, promising a gradual publication of results by prefecture and by municipality in Conakry starting Monday.
On the security front, a substantial deployment was carried out nationwide by defense and security forces, both at polling centers and stations, as well as at major roundabouts and strategic intersections.
"We monitored the voting process from start to finish and visited four polling stations since this morning," said Abdoulie Janneh, head of the Economic Community of West African States Election Observation Mission, who led a delegation of 120 observers. ■