Paul Kagame, the Chairman of RPF-Inkotanyi, and First Lady Jeanette Kagame, on July 15, cast their votes in presidential and parliamentary elections that unfolded across the country.

At Gacuriro Technical Secondary School polling station in Kinyinya Sector, they joined Rwandans who registered for elections in the area who came as early as 5 a.m. in the morning and waited for polls to start at 7 a.m.

Kagame is the presidential candidate of RPF-Inkotanyi and eight allied political parties. He is competing with Frank Habineza, the Chairman of the Democratic Green Party, and Philip Mpayimana, an independent candidate.

According to the National Electoral Commission (NEC), more than nine million Rwandans registered to vote in the elections that will decide the President and Members of Parliament for the next five-year term.

Two million of the voters were first-time voters.

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Adolphe Mageza, the Head of SOS Gacuriro polling station, said they received voting materials on time including ballot papers, voter lists, and electoral ink, and started receiving voters early in the morning but had to wait until 7a.m to start.

He noted that the turnout of people as time went on indicated that every eligible person in the area would vote, adding that there was no special arrangement for officials. Everybody was treated the same way as they exercised their civic right.

Apart from special cases such as the elderly and persons with disability who would get assistance, every other Rwandan, regardless of their position, was in queues as each had their turn to enter the voting rooms.

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Nadine Umubyeyi, 42-year-old Rwandan living in the UK, said she flew back to the country to get the opportunity to vote from home.

"This is my home and I decided to come and vote from home and meet my fellow Rwandans indulged in the same purpose. I am a first-time voter and it really feels good. Every time one comes here, you find that things have changed in a positive way and we can only look forward to more development.”

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Kenya’s former Chief Justice David Maraga who is the head of the East African Community (EAC) election observers’ mission in Rwanda, said that prior to election day, the team held meetings with the Rwanda National Police, NEC, and Rwanda’s Chief Justice, and found that they were well prepared for any case that might arise.

"Generally, what we see is that the organization is fantastic. I went to a polling station before 7 a.m. I saw how the head of the station and polling clerks were sworn in and opening ballot boxes to show they were empty and sealed them.”

He said the EAC election observers team moved to different stations and their observatory report will be released on July 17.

More than 1,000 local and foreign observers were accredited for the presidential and parliamentary elections.

Partial results of the elections will be announced in the evening of July 15, while provisional results will be announced on July 20, and the final results on July 27, according to NEC.