Ivorians were awaiting the results of the presidential election held the day before on Sunday, calmly but without much enthusiasm from voters or any real suspense, with Alassane Ouattara, in power since 2011, being the overwhelming favorite.

Nearly 9 million people were called to vote on Saturday in this country, the world's leading cocoa producer and once again a pole of stability in a West Africa shaken by coups and jihadist attacks.

Although the official turnout figure is not yet known, the president of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), Ibrahime Kuibiert Coulibaly, estimated on Saturday evening that it should be "around 50%."

In the west and south, regions where the opposition has historically been strong, many polling stations remained virtually deserted, including in the economic capital Abidjan, the country's main voter base.

On the other hand, in the northern part, traditionally favorable to President Ouattara, voters mobilized, notably in Bouaké (center), the second city of the country.

"We are seeing a very clear divide between the north and the south. The turnout is lower than expected. We can cast doubt on the legitimacy of a president elected under these conditions," Simon Doho, leader of the PDCI, the main opposition party, told AFP.

Its leader, Tidjane Thiam, was not on the ballot on Saturday, nor was former President Laurent Gbagbo, both having been excluded from the ballot and removed from the electoral lists, the former for nationality issues, the latter for a criminal conviction.

Teenager killed

A large part of the Ivorian population was therefore without a candidate on Saturday, a scenario which opens the door wide to a re-election of Alassane Ouattara with a landslide score.

This is reminiscent of the last election in 2020, where he obtained 94% of the vote with a turnout slightly above 50%, in a poll then boycotted by the main opponents.

This Saturday, four opponents faced him, but none of them seem to have a chance of reaching a second round, due to a lack of support from a major party or significant financial resources.

Although the vote was generally peaceful, incidents were reported in 2% of polling stations, or around 200 locations, according to a police report sent to AFP.

Clashes broke out in several towns in the south and west, but these incidents had "no major impact on the conduct of the vote," according to Interior Minister Vagondo Diomandé.

A 13-year-old boy was killed by a gunshot from a public transport vehicle in Gregbeu (central-west), a security source told AFP. This is the fifth death since mid-October on the sidelines of the electoral process.

Nearly 44,000 police officers were deployed across the country and the government banned demonstrations by ineligible opponents in October, making hundreds of arrests for public order disturbances in particular.

On Saturday evening, after the vote, Alassane Ouattara appeared at his party headquarters, smiling, applauded by a few dozen activists, AFP noted.

The CEI is expected to announce the results department by department starting Sunday. The compiled results should be known by Monday.