Burkina Faso election raises hope of change

The pro-Compaore CDP is still fielding candidates in the parliamentary elections and is expected to do well in parts of the country traditionally behind “Beau Blaise”.

“It is a landmark day”, Mr. Kabore said, adding that he has voted ” with a sense of pride and serenity as well as of hope for the future of Burkina Faso”.

“It is a victory for the youth that has expressed its will for change and for real democracy”, he said. “We have faced a lot of coups and it is enough”, stated Roch Marc Christian Kabore, one of many front-runners.Abdoulaye Sawadogo, an engineer at a street building company, stated he hopes the brand new leader will address problems with employment, health & education.

“We think it is certainly a militant group that identified the Inata gold mine and chose to take action to get hold of funds”, Zagre said.

Economist Mr Diabre has served as minister of economy and finance before he fell out with Mr Campaore in 2010. Diabre heads the Union for Progress and Change (UPC), which for many years was the formal opposition.

Minor irregularities were reported, such as a lack of equipment or some voters not finding their names on voting lists at some polling stations.

It is the first election since last year’s popular uprising which toppled longstanding president Blaise Compaore.

Polls slowly opened Sunday as the sun rose in the vote to replace a transitional government.

This backdrop of political drama forced the country to reschedule its elections, which had originally been planned for October. It was the country’s sixth coup ’cause it gained independence from France in 1960.Burkina Faso’s new electoral code bars presidential candidates who supported Compaore’s bid to alter the constitution, though the ex-president’s party bash might have a robust showing within the legislative election.

One of the two women running for president, Saran Sere-Sereme, said she had been unable to vote as her house was burgled a few days ago and her voting papers stolen. “The distractions of the election period could provide a greater opportunity for militants to enter Burkina Faso, most likely from Mali, and carry out attacks”, said Simon Jennings, an analyst at London-based Assaye Risk.

Security is tight with up to 25,000 troops expected to be deployed across the country.