JOHANNESBURG 

Mauritanians started casting their ballots on Saturday to choose a new president among seven candidates, including the incumbent Mohamed Ould Cheikh El Ghazouani.

Polling stations opened for 12 hours of voting at 7 a.m. local time (0700GMT), with the first results expected later in the day, according to local media reports.

There are 1.9 million registered voters in the African country with a population of some 4.5 million, according to figures from the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI).

The 67-year-old incumbent El Ghazouani, who has been in office since 2019, is seeking a second and final term in office.

Human rights and anti-slavery campaigner Biram Dah Abeid, 59, and 49-year-old Hamadi Ould Sid' El Moctar, leader of the National Rally for Reform and Development, also known as Tewassoul, are the two leading contenders.

Not new to politics, Abeid has previously contended for the top job in 2019, coming second with 18% of the vote.

He is campaigning against the marginalization of the country's Black African population and the government's human rights track record.

Moctar's opposition Tewassoul party has the largest number of seats in parliament after the ruling El Insaf party.

Also vying for presidential office are opposition parliamentarian El-Aid Ould Mohamedan, physician Outouma Soumare, politician Mamadou Boukari, and finance inspector Mohamed Lamine Mourteji El Wafi.

If none of the candidates are able to secure a majority, the top two candidates will go to a run-off on July 13.