KAMPALA, Feb. 25 (Xinhuanet) -- Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni continues to lead in the country's first multiparty presidential elections, according to partial results announced Saturday morning.

    Provisional results released by the Electoral Commission (EC) at 10 a.m. (0700 GMT) showed that Museveni has 60.64 percent of the votes compared with his top challenger Kizza Besigye's 36.04 percent, with 55.43 percent of the total ballots counted.

    Among the total 19,786 polling stations around the country, 80.01 percent, or 15, 831 stations have reported their tallies.

    EC Chairman Badru Kiggundu cautioned that only the commission has the mandate to announce the results. He had warned any candidates of declaring themselves winners.

    The final results will be announced before 5 p.m. (1400 GMT) on Saturday, which is the deadline, according to the chairman.

    Millions of Ugandans went to polls Thursday in the country's first multiparty elections in two decades to elect a president and members of parliament.

    President Museveni is favored to win the presidential race, with Kizza Besigye of the opposition Forum for Democratic Changes as his main rival.

    If neither man wins 50 percent, a run-off will be held within a month.

    Three other candidates have also contested in the presidential bid, including Mayor of Kampala John Ssebaana Kizito of the Democratic Party, Miria Kalule Obote of the Uganda People's Congress, and independent candidate Abed Bwanika.

    Till now they have only raked in about three percent of the votes. Enditem