Kigali, July 15 : Millions of Rwandan citizens cast their ballots Monday morning at more than 2,600 polling stations nationwide to elect their president and members of parliament.

Voting began at 7 a.m. local time and will conclude at 3 p.m. Approximately 9.5 million eligible voters are expected to exercise their civic duty, according to the National Election Commission (NEC), reports Xinhua news agency.

Rwandan voters arrived at their respective polling stations as early as 6 a.m., forming long queues before the official voting time of 7 a.m. Voters lined up calmly and in an orderly manner as polling staff oversaw the process to ensure a peaceful voting experience.

On Sunday, according to the NEC, Rwandans residing abroad cast their votes in 140 polling sites across 70 countries worldwide.

Three presidential candidates are vying for the presidency, incumbent President Paul Kagame of the ruling Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF), Frank Habineza of the opposition Democratic Green Party of Rwanda, and Philippe Mpayimana, an independent candidate.

There are 589 candidates for the 80 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the bicameral national legislature of Rwanda, including representatives from political parties, special groups (youth, women, and people with disabilities), and one independent candidate, according to the NEC.

More than 100,000 Rwandans volunteered as polling staff, and over 1,100 local and foreign observers have been accredited for the elections, according to the NEC.

The foreign observers represent various regional and international organisations, including the African Union, European Union, East African Community (EAC), Commonwealth, International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), and Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS).

/IANS