Abidjan, Oct 25 : Voters in Cote d'Ivoire began casting their ballots on Saturday in the 2025 presidential election.

At the Groupe Scolaire Plateau de Port-Bouet 2 voting centre in Abidjan, many voters arrived before 8 am (0800 GMT), the official start time, under the watch of police officers and gendarmes.

Polling stations will remain open until 6 pm local time, Xinhua news agency reported. According to the Independent Electoral Commission, a total of 25,678 polling stations have been set up, 25,370 within Cote d'Ivoire and 308 abroad, to accommodate 8,727,431 registered voters, including 8,607,253 in the country and 120,178 overseas.

Incumbent President 83-year-old Alassane Ouattara is representing the Rally of Houphouetists for Democracy and Peace and seeking a fourth term in office. He is facing four other contenders, including former First Lady Simone Ehivet Gbagbo, 76, candidate of the Movement of Capable Generations; Jean-Louis Billon, 60, candidate of the Democratic Congress; Ahoua Don Mello, 67, an independent candidate; and Henriette Lagou Adjoua, 66, candidate for the Group of Political Partners for Peace.

The election is being held amid heightened political and social tension following court rulings that barred key opposition leaders from contesting.

The government of Cote d'Ivoire had last week announced a two-month temporary ban on all public gatherings and demonstrations organised by political parties or groups across the country.

According to a decree issued by Minister of Interior and Security Vagondo Diomande and Minister of State and Minister of Defence Tene Birahima Ouattara, the measure aimed at maintaining public order and safeguard national security during the electoral period.

The decree stipulates that only demonstrations directly related to the presidential election process will be permitted, while all other public political gatherings remain strictly prohibited, warning that violators will face prosecution.

Implementation of the ban has been entrusted to senior officials within the territorial administration, the Gendarmerie and the National Police.

The official campaign period for the presidential election began on October 10 and ended on October 23.

/IANS