LIBREVILLE, Aug. 30 (Xinhua) -- The Gabonese went to polls on Sunday to elect a new president to succeed late President Omar Bongo Ondima who died of illness in Spain on June 8 this year.

    Five polling stations at the Leon Mba National Lycee in the capital Libreville opened on schedule at 7 a. m. local time (0600GMT) to receive voters, Xinhua's correspondent noticed. The voting is set to close at 6 p.m. (1700 GMT). Election results will not be known until two or three days later.

    Out of the country's 1.4 million population, 813,164 voters are expected at the 2,810 polling stations across the country, according to the Autonomous and Permanent National Electoral Commission (CEANP).

    Up to 200 international monitors are being deployed to supervise the process, especially those from the African Union and the International Organization of Franconie.

    The presidential election is widely seen here as the most important one as it will witness the first power transfer in the country in 40 years.

    In accordance with the Constitution of Gabon, a presidential election must be arranged within 30 to 45 days after the death of Omar Bongo.

    The interim government led by Rose Francine Rogombe proposed to the Constitutional Court that the presidential election be delayed beyond the 30 to 45 days deadline due to the pressing time.

    On July 15, the CEANP proposed to the interim government that the election be held on Aug. 30.

    A total of 18 candidates are competing in Sunday's presidential election for the country's top job, which runs seven years each term.

    There had been 23 candidates, of which five withdrew on the eve of Sunday's race.

    Among the 18 candidates, Ali Bongo Odimba from the ruling Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) is widely seen here as a favorite to win the presidential election.

    On July 19, the ruling party formally announced that Ali Bongo Odimba, the son of late president Omar Bongo and the then defense minister of the country, would stand as its candidate in the race.

    Ali Bongo Ondimba was dismissed as minister of national defense by interim President Rose Francine Rogombe on Aug. 15 so as to contest in the presidential election on an equal footing with other candidates.

    Accepting the nomination by the ruling party, Ali Bonog Ondimba underlined the national unity by vowing that if elected, he would spare no efforts in fighting corruption and redistribute the proceeds of economic growth.

    During the campaign which formally kicked off on Aug. 15 and concluded on Aug. 30, Ali Bongo Ondimba's campaign focused on his platform of peace, development and equality.

    "We are going to jealously guard the peace which was left behind by late President Omar Bongo Ondimba while stressing on durable development and the equitable distribution of resources to all the people," he said to the local population in the western province of Estuaire during last weekend.

    Ali Bongo Ondimba also announced to reform the education system and improve the professional training while taking into account the state potential and the market needs if he is elected.

    "Our duty will be to create jobs all over," he said while promising to never interfere with the work of the two parliamentary chambers, the senate and the national assembly, in which his party has the majority representation.

    To ensure security for the election, Gabonese Interior Minister Jean Francois Ndongou has announced the closure of land and maritime borders between Aug. 28 and Sept. 3. But the Leon Mba International Airport in Libreville remains open to traffic, an official source has indicated.

    Gabon is located at west-central Africa, sharing borders with the Gulf of Guinea to the west, Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, and Cameroon to the north, with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south.

    With an area of almost 270,000 square km, Gabon is divided into nine provinces and further into 37 departments.

    Since its independence from France on Aug. 17, 1960, the republic has been ruled by two presidents, Leon M'ba and Omar Bongo.

    In the early 1990s, Gabon introduced a multi-party system and a new democratic constitution that allowed for a more transparent electoral process and reformed many governmental institutions.

    The small population together with abundant natural resources and foreign private investment have helped make Gabon one of the most prosperous countries in the region, with a per capita income of four times the average for Sub-Saharan Africa. This is in large part due to offshore oil production.