Chad Counts Votes as Deby Seeks Sixth Term after 30 Years in Power

N'DJAMENA - Vote counting has started in Chad after a tense presidential election on Sunday that is likely to see President Idriss Deby extend his three-decade rule, despite signs of growing discontent over his handling of the nation's oil wealth.

Election officials began counting ballots at a polling station in center of the capital N'Djamena immediately after polls closed, watched by a group of observers, a Reuters reporter said. The election commission has until April 25 to announce provisional results. Deby, 68, was the first to cast his ballot at a polling station in the capital N'Djamena. He is one of Africa's longest-serving leaders and an ally of Western powers in the fight against Islamist militants in West and Central Africa.