Bangladeshis voted in their droves on Monday in elections that marked the end of two years of emergency rule, with a pair of rival former prime ministers vying to reclaim power in the impoverished nation.Amid tight security, the first polls since 2001 saw a turnout as high as 70 percent, with none of the violence that forced the last scheduled vote to be cancelled and an army-backed interim government take control. Long queues snaked outside voting stations all day as hundreds of thousands of police and troops stood ready to avert clashes between party activists or any attacks by Islamic extremists.
Despite efforts by the caretaker regime to shake up a political system seen as deeply corrupt, the two leading candidates were former prime ministers who ruled alternately since 1991 and whose mutual hatred has paralysed the country.
Sheikh Hasina Wajed of the Awami League and Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), wooed voters with promises of cheap food, action against Islamic militancy and curbs on corruption. The women, who were themselves jailed on corruption charges by the current regime before being released to contest the elections, warned of voter fraud but said they would not challenge the result.
After voting in the capital Dhaka, Sheikh Hasina questioned how some ballot papers had been distributed but insisted, "I want the election to take place peacefully. Whatever the result is, we all should accept it."
Zia appeared confident of victory. "If a free and fair election takes place today, we will win with a landslide victory like the 2001 election," she said.
With counting under way, analysts said the result was uncertain as a third of the 81 million electorate was voting for the first time. There were also concerns that a smooth transfer of power could prove difficult if no clear winner emerged. Final results were due after midnight (1800 GMT Monday).