Pakistanis voted today in a one-horse presidential referendum that is likely to see Mr Pervez Musharraf, leader of the 1999 military coup, cement his grip on power for five more years.
People were seen lining up at polling stations before they opened this morning, with most saying they wanted Mr Musharraf to stay as president.
Mr Musharraf, who named himself president in June last year, is hoping to legitimise his position ahead of general elections scheduled for October.
"I feel good and I feel confident," he told reporters after casting his vote in Rawalpindi, adding however he had never before run in any kind of election campaign. "I am hopeful - I have no experience of these things."
Opposition political and religious parties urged their followers to boycott the vote, accusing Mr Musharraf of shredding the 1973 constitution and trying to manipulate the outcome.
As voting closed, they claimed the turnout was an embarrassing failure for the general, with as little as six percent of the electorate participating.
"Today the people of Pakistan have given their verdict against General Musharraf," said Mr Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan, chief of the 15 party Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy.
"We demand he should immediately step down and let there be an interim civilian set-up to run the affairs of the country till October elections."
AFP