Nigerians vote in latest step toward civilian rule

"From the reports we have, it has been excellent, very successful," said Adama Bawa Mu'azu, secretary of the Independent National Electoral Commission. "The voter turnout is reasonable and the difficulties experienced in previous elections were eliminated this time."

Ballot counting started immediately, but election officials said poor roads and communications would prevent collating all the results until Sunday at the earliest.

At least half a million officials from the electoral commission and the three parties were deployed to ensure a fair vote at more than 150,000 polling stations.

The centrist Peoples Democratic Party hopes to consolidate its position after the December vote in which it won control of 60 percent of Nigeria's local councils.

The party was formed by politicians who opposed the late dictator Sani Abacha's bid to remain in power before his death in June made way for Abubakar, a soft-spoken career soldier.

Only two other parties did well enough in December to qualify for state and national elections.

The right-of-center All People's Party, dubbed the "Abacha People's Party" by its detractors because of the presence of former Abacha supporters among its leaders, came in a distant second in December.

The left-leaning Alliance for Democracy is expected to sweep the vote in its southwestern ethnic Yoruba heartland but make little impact elsewhere.

Because of the local importance of governors, who control a significant share of oil revenues distributed by the national government, political rivalry has been intense and at times violent.

Teams of international observers form the United Nations and other agencies have arrived to help local observers monitor implementation of Abubakar's democracy plan. They gave the December elections a generally clean bill of health.

Nigerians on the streets of Lagos

Only in southern Bayelsa State did insecurity prevent a ballot, following protests by ethnic Ijaw youths demanding a greater share of the region's oil wealth. Up to 26 were killed last weekend as troop reinforcements quelled the unrest.

There is no election in the capital of Abuja, which is headed by a government minister rather than a governor.

Nigerians have gone through numerous attempts to end military rule, but civilians have held power for only 10 years since independence from Britain in 1960.

"We are voting because we want change. We are voting because we want to end military rule and for it never to return," said physician Dipo Bamigbose at a polling station in the center of Lagos.

Abubakar has freed political prisoners, opened up the political process and repeatedly vowed to hand over power to civilians. Nigeria, which became an international pariah under Abacha for its poor human rights record, is again welcoming international envoys and wooing investors.

Despite its political shift, Nigeria remains mired in poverty. Although it is the world's sixth-largest oil producer, the economy has been crippled by years of mismanagement and corruption.