Nigeria is set to vote in presidential and parliamentary elections seen as the most open since Africa’s most populous nation switched from military rule to democracy in 1999.
As polling is about to start, some facts to remember
Voting takes place from 8am to 2pm (07:00 to 13:00 GMT).
Voters who join a polling station queue before polls close will be allowed to cast their ballots even after closing time.
More than 93 million people are registered to vote.
To win, a presidential candidate must receive the largest number of votes cast nationwide and at least a quarter of the votes in no fewer than 24 of Nigeria’s 36 states.
The counting and collating process is expected to take several days. Results are expected in the first half of next week.
Also, don’t forget to check out our explainer with all you need to know about the election.
28m ago (06:45 GMT)
What will decide Nigeria’s general election?
In this episode of The Stream, we looked at the presidential candidates’ vision for Nigeria in the lead-up to election day and asked what may lie ahead for the country under a change of leadership.
Peter Obi is disrupting Nigeria’s election. Can he win it?
Peter Obi of the small Labour Party is leading most polls ahead of the more established candidates Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party and Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress.
But in a country where polling data is a new phenomenon, can he actually win?
Do investors have a preferred candidate?
Few investors have expressed a strong preference for who wins the presidential race. All four main candidates propose variations of similar policies – currency exchange reform, fuel subsidy removal or phase-out, and boosting the economy.
population and a median age of 18 years.
The country is being perceived as a stabilising force in West Africa, where a series of coup attempts in the past three years indicate a crisis of confidence in democracy.
The vote comes at a crucial time for the economy of the oil-rich nation, as the country’s currency, the naira, has plummeted to a third of its value in 2015.