UGANDA: Yoweri Museveni appeared on course to maintain his 20-year grip on power, as provisional results in Uganda's presidential election last night showed he had secured a majority in the first round of voting.
Opinion polls had suggested that his nearest challenger, Kizza Besigye, who spent the early part of the campaign fighting charges of rape and treason, had done enough to force a runoff.
But results issued yesterday showed President Museveni ahead with just over 65 per cent of the vote. Dr Besigye trailed with 32 per cent after almost a quarter of the ballot papers had been tallied in the capital, Kampala.
A spokesman for Mr Museveni's National Resistance Movement said: "We have won this election. We have won both the presidential and parliamentary vote." A separate count run by the independent Daily Monitor suggested the race was closer. It put Mr Museveni ahead on 51 per cent to Dr Besigye's 45 per cent.
Final results in the country's first multiparty elections in 26 years are expected today, amid fears that a big government majority could bring Dr Besigye's supporters on to the streets.
EU observers said yesterday polling appeared to have been free from organised rigging, but added that the opposition had been denied a "level playing field" during the campaign.
"We therefore strongly urge all political leaders to demonstrate responsibility in calling for calm and for all political contestants to use the complaints and appeals mechanism outlined in the election legislation, should they have concerns about any aspect of the election process," said Max van den Berg, the EU's chief observer.
His report said Dr Besigye had spent the early part of his campaign in and out of court fighting charges that many believe to be politically motivated.
Mr van den Berg also said Mr Museveni had used the state apparatus, from government cars to state-controlled media, to bolster his campaign.
A Museveni win would place international donors, which supply half of Uganda's operating budget, in an awkward position.
The former rebel leader was once the darling of the West, promising democracy and economic reforms after toppling the hated regime of Milton Obote in 1986. But recently he has become increasingly authoritarian.
Ireland was among European states to withhold aid last year in protest at Dr Besigye's arrest.
This year's election campaign was treated by both sides as a referendum on Mr Museveni's record.
Supporters of Dr Besigye's Forum for Democratic Change said yesterday they were considering a legal challenge, after reports that supporters were arrested or denied the chance to vote.
A Besigye spokesman said: "It has been rigged in many areas where the population is sparse. In some polling stations our supporters have been chased away."
Last year Mr Museveni forced through legislation changing the constitution to allow him to stand for a third term. He has already said he plans to run again in 2011.