Burkina Faso holds a presidential election Sunday with the incumbent, Blaise Compaore, heavily favored to win against a divided opposition and extend his 23-year rule of the West African nation.
Mr. Compaore took power in a 1987 coup and has stood in three subsequent elections, winning seven-year terms in 1991 and 1998 in polls boycotted by the opposition. He later won a five-year term in 2005 with 80 percent of the vote against weak rivals.
President Compaore faces six other candidates in Sunday’s election, including opposition leader Benewende Sankara, who finished second in 2005 with almost five percent of the vote.
Reports from Burkina Faso say election campaigning has been subdued and apathy is high among the country’s 3.2 million registered voters.
Mr. Compaore leads one of the world’s poorest countries but has overseen a recent boom in gold production that has helped to diversify the agriculture and livestock-dependent economy. Critics say he has been unable to address Burkina Faso’s poverty and unemployment.
Before the 2005 election, Burkina Faso introduced a limit on presidential terms, saying presidents can serve for a maximum of two five-year periods. The measure was not retroactive.
Mr. Compaore’s ruling Congress for Democracy and Progress party said earlier this year that it wants to abolish the presidential term limit.
Some information in this story was provided by AFP and Bloomberg.
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