Finance Minister favored in Benin race

Benin's finance minister Romuald Wadagni was expected to coast to victory in a presidential election on Sunday, buoyed by strong economic growth and the absence of a credible challenger amid mounting fears over jihadist violence.

President Patrice Talon, who has ruled the West African nation since 2016 but is unable to seek a third term under the constitution, selected Wadagni to succeed him. That means he has the backing of the dominant ruling coalition in the race, which is taking place four months after Talon’s government narrowly survived a coup attempt nL6N3XE0R9.

Voting got underway in the largest city Cotonou at 7 a.m. (0600 GMT). Early turnout was subdued, though election officials said they expected lines to swell after morning church services end.

WADAGNI VOWS TO GOVERN IN SIMILAR WAY TO PREDECESSOR

At a polling station in the Zongo-Nima neighbourhood, women bearing cardboard signs reading "Merci Talon" and "Merci Papa" waited for the outgoing president, expected there to cast his ballot.

Talon "finished his job, and he's now leaving the political scene," voter Daouda Idriss said.

Wadagni, who has served as finance minister for a decade, has vowed to govern in much the same manner as Talon, promising to deliver on bread-and-butter issues like expanding access to clean water and guaranteeing emergency healthcare regardless of ability to pay.

He will also face pressure to address the country's security problems. Benin has been the hardest hit among coastal West African states by jihadist groups who have made major incursions in the central Sahel.

The 49-year-old former executive of accountants Deloitte nL8N40M0M5 voted in his hometown of Lokossa, in southern Benin, wearing all white and accompanied by his wife. 

Polls were scheduled to close at 4 p.m. (1500 GMT). More than 7.9 million people were registered to vote, including 62,000 in the diaspora of Benin nationals living abroad. Provisional results were expected on Tuesday.

OPPONENT SAYS GAINS FROM GROWTH ARE LIMITED

The main opposition party, The Democrats, failed to get enough lawmakers to sponsor a candidate of its own and did not back the only other candidate on the ballot - Paul Hounkpe of the Cowry Forces for an Emerging Benin, which was once the ruling party but now commands only a smaller following.

Hounkpe says growth under Talon and Wadagni has not improved the lives of most people. "If we make progress but none of us can afford three meals a day, we haven't made any progress. Yes or no?" he said at a rally earlier this month.

He has also decried what he described as a climate of fear as political space for the opposition shrinks, with the ruling coalition holding every seat in the National Assembly.

On the campaign trail, many prospective voters spoke of the presidential election as a formality and urged Wadagni to deliver on his platform.

“Once President Romuald Wadagni is at the head of this country, I would like him to promote and help young people to find work because we have many young graduates on the streets driving 'zem'," said 34-year-old teacher Marcel Sovi, using a local slang word for motorcycle taxis.

Christelle Tessi, a 40-year-old trader, said Wadagni should focus on improving security in the north, where al Qaeda-linked Jama'at Nusrat al‑Islam wal‑Muslimin killed 54 ‌Benin soldiers nL8N3R12O6 in one attack a year ago and another 15 in an attack last month.

"What is happening in northern Benin is that our brothers are being killed, and if a soldier goes there on a mission, it is his body that comes back," she said.

"We beg him to fight against these bandits so that peace may reign in our country."