(AP Photo). Security forces hold back protesters against the recent election in Port Harcourt , Nigeria, Sunday, March 29, 2015. Voting in Nigeria's elections continued in certain areas on Sunday after technical problems prevented some people from cast...
(AP Photo/Ben Curtis). Members of the congregation raise their hands in celebration and prayer during a sermon at the Banner of Life bible church in the mainly Christian Sabon Gari neighborhood of Kano, northern Nigeria on Palm Sunday, March 29, 2015. ...
(AP Photo/Ben Curtis). A three-wheeled "tuk-tuk" passenger taxi passes by as a police truck with water cannons stands guard outside the election commission offices in Kano, northern Nigeria on Palm Sunday, March 29, 2015. Many Christians left the town ...
(AP Photo/Ben Curtis). Two women walk down a deserted street with roadblocks at the end leading to the St Charles Catholic Church, scene of a 2014 bomb attack blamed on Boko Haram Islamic insurgents, in the mainly Christian Sabon Gari neighborhood of K...
(AP Photo/Ben Curtis). Two youths ride bicycles past a mural on a school wall and election posters supporting President Goodluck Jonathan, on a street in Kano, Nigeria Sunday, March 29, 2015. Voting in Nigeria's elections continued in certain areas on ...
The Florida Highway Patrol says eight people died and 10 others were injured when a passenger van ran through a stop sign, crossed all lanes of U.S. 27 and landed in a canal in rural southwest Florida.More >>
Eight people died and 10 others were injured when a van from a church ran through a stop sign, crossed all lanes of U.S. 27 and landed in a canal in rural southwest Florida, the Florida Highway Patrol said.More >>
Susan Bernardo trusted her stockbroker. She wound up losing a fortune.More >>
Susan Bernardo trusted her stockbroker. She wound up losing a fortune.More >>
After nearly 100 years, the National Park Service holds some of the most beautiful and historic places in the country, though there's also an $11 billion backlog of unfunded maintenance and a visitor base...More >>
After nearly 100 years, the National Park Service holds some of the most beautiful and historic places in the country, though there's also an $11 billion backlog of unfunded maintenance and a visitor base that's...More >>
A discrimination lawsuit that put a spotlight on gender balance and working conditions for women at Silicon Valley firms ended with a jury rejecting the female plaintiff's claims.More >>
A long legal battle over accusations that a prominent Silicon Valley venture capital firm demeaned women and held them to a different standard than their male colleagues became a flashpoint in the ongoing discussion about...More >>
By The Associated Press Internet outages can disrupt emergency services, business transactions and basic communication. Here are few things to know about the nation's Internet infrastructure...More >>
By The Associated Press Internet outages can disrupt emergency services, business transactions and basic communication. Here are few things to know about the nation's Internet infrastructure and its...More >>
By DAVID A. LIEB Associated Press Hunter Newby describes himself as a real estate entrepreneur, even if he's not marketing houses or land. Instead, he's selling space on a new fiber-optic...More >>
By DAVID A. LIEB Associated Press Hunter Newby describes himself as a real estate entrepreneur, even if he's not marketing houses or land. Instead, he's selling space on a new fiber-optic...More >>
When vandals sliced a fiber-optic cable in the Arizona desert last month, they did more than time-warp thousands of people back to an era before computers, credit cards or even phones. They exposed a glaring...More >>
When vandals sliced a fiber-optic cable in the Arizona desert last month, they did more than time-warp thousands of people back to an era before computers, credit cards or even phones. They exposed a glaring vulnerability...More >>
The federal Bureau of Reclamation oversees several large-scale projects aimed at delivering drinking water to rural communities in the West. The agency has $36 million to spend on projects during the next fiscal...More >>
The federal Bureau of Reclamation oversees several large-scale projects aimed at delivering drinking water to rural communities in the West. The agency has $36 million to spend on projects during the next fiscal year - a...More >>
Susan Bernardo trusted her stockbroker. She wound up losing a fortune.More >>
Susan Bernardo trusted her stockbroker. She wound up losing a fortune.More >>
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence authorized a short-term needle-exchange program and other steps Thursday to help contain the spread of HIV in a county tied to 79 new infections since January, all of them linked to...More >>
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence overrode state law and his own anti-drug policies Thursday to authorize a short-term needle-exchange program designed to help contain HIV infections in a rural county where more than six dozen cases...More >>
Smokey fire, building collapse near New York University injure 12 people; gas blast blamedMore >>
Smokey fire, building collapse near New York University injure 12 people; gas blast blamedMore >>
Cellphones, other distractions a bigger factor in teen crashes than previously knownMore >>
Cellphones, other distractions a bigger factor in teen crashes than previously knownMore >>
AP Investigation: Men forced to work as slaves to catch seafood for global supplyMore >>
AP Investigation: Men forced to work as slaves to catch seafood for global supplyMore >>
Maker of iconic Louisville Slugger bats selling brand to Wilson Sporting Goods for $70 millionMore >>
Maker of iconic Louisville Slugger bats selling brand to Wilson Sporting Goods for $70 millionMore >>
Supreme Court wrestles with state's power to keep Confederate battle flag off license platesMore >>
Supreme Court wrestles with state's power to keep Confederate battle flag off license platesMore >>
Police unable to confirm alleged gang rape described in Rolling Stone, suspend investigationMore >>
Police unable to confirm alleged gang rape described in Rolling Stone, suspend investigationMore >>
US trains Iraqi security forces as battle to recapture Tikrit from Islamic State group goes onMore >>
US trains Iraqi security forces as battle to recapture Tikrit from Islamic State group goes onMore >>
Aging US veterans return to Iwo Jima for 70th anniversary of iconic WWII battleMore >>
Aging US veterans return to Iwo Jima for 70th anniversary of iconic WWII battleMore >>
Orthodox Jewish neighbors struggling with loss of 7 'beautiful little children' in deadly fireMore >>
Orthodox Jewish neighbors struggling with loss of 7 'beautiful little children' in deadly fireMore >>
FBI urges patience during investigation into hanging death of black man in MississippiMore >>
FBI urges patience during investigation into hanging death of black man in MississippiMore >>
By MICHELLE FAUL and HILARY UGURU
Associated Press
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) - Nigerians waited in hope and fear on Monday for results of a presidential election in which voting was relatively smooth nationwide despite technical glitches, deadly attacks by Islamic extremists and allegations of political thuggery in some areas.
The winner of the vote in Africa's most populous and richest nation could be announced late Monday or on Tuesday, electoral officials said. The race between President Goodluck Jonathan and former military dictator Muhammadu Buhari was too close to call, according to analysts.
While there are fears that violence could erupt once results are announced, one radio station played a reconciliation song written by entertainment star 2Face Idibia in Nigeria's colloquial English: "Vote not fight; Election no be war!"
Police in Port Harcourt, Nigeria's oil capital, fired tear gas Monday morning to disperse thousands of women supporters of the opposition coalition who demanded the cancellation of the election in Rivers state.
The opposition is demanding new elections in the southern states of Rivers and Akwa Ibom, alleging irregularities that include missing and false results sheets and electoral officials being replaced by government officials loyal to Jonathan. The national election commission said it is investigating numerous complaints.
Observers for the African Union said Sunday night that the weekend voting was conducted in a peaceful atmosphere and "largely meets the continental and regional principles of democratic elections."
Jonathan, 57, is a Christian from a minority tribe in the lush oil-producing south and 72-year-old Buhari is a Muslim from the semi-arid north that is home to farmers and cattle herders.
After Buhari lost to Jonathan in 2011, more than 1,000 people died and some 65,000 were forced from their homes in northern riots, according to the National Human Rights Commission.
There was a high turnout among the nearly 60 million people who had cards to vote in an election that for the first time offers the possibility of a challenger defeating a sitting president.
Voters also are electing legislators for parliament, where the opposition currently has a slight edge over Jonathan's party in the House of Assembly. Voting for 13 constituencies was postponed until April because of shortages of ballot papers.
Dozens of legislators defected from Jonathan's party to a new opposition coalition that has transformed Nigeria's political landscape by uniting behind one candidate for the first time.
Detractors accuse Jonathan of being ineffectual and Buhari of being anti-democratic.
Jonathan's party has governed since decades of military dictatorship ended in 1999.
Some progress has been made - a nearly 20 percent boost in manufacturing and a mini agricultural revolution tripling production of some basics like rice - but corruption is endemic and the vast majority of Nigeria's 170 million people are poor.
Among them are residents of the Niger Delta that produces petroleum, the cornerstone of the economy. The government has done little to improve the lot of hundreds of thousands living with the consequences of more than half a century of careless oil production that has polluted mangrove swamps and farmlands, destroying the livelihoods of fishermen and farmers.
The elections come as Nigeria's military, backed by armies from neighboring countries, has announced major victories over home-grown Boko Haram Islamic extremists after months of defeats.
On the political front, supporters of both sides are threatening violence if their candidate does not win, with militants in the Niger Delta saying there will be "all-out war" if Jonathan loses. Opposition leaders say Jonathan paid off former oil militants just weeks before the election, but a presidential adviser, Reuben Abati, said money was paid as part of a government contract requiring the ex-fighters to guard oil installations they once attacked.
The Niger Delta militants started as gangs paid by politicians to steal elections. So did some of the fighters who now belong to Boko Haram, which last month pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group controlling parts of Syria and Iraq.
Buhari two years ago demanded the government offer the same paid-off amnesty to Boko Haram, but since has said he will use his long military background to defeat the insurgents.
___
Uguru reported from Port Harcourt.
Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.