Kenyans queued in large numbers through fields and along pavements, with reports that some had waited all night to cast their ballots.
Opinion polls put incumbent Uhuru Kenyatta, son of Kenya’s founding president, neck and neck with his arch rival Raila Odinga.
President Kenyatta, 55, called for calm on the eve of polling but opposition concerns about vote rigging have already emerged.
His long-time foe Odinga, 72, son of Kenya’s first vice-president, complained about the result in 2007 and 2013. A decade ago, outbreaks of ethnic violence followed in which some 1,200 people were killed and 600,000 displaced.
Note:
In 2013, electronic voting equipment suffered widespread failures, although Odinga’s decision to limit his complaints to the courts prevented any unrest.
This year, the torture and murder of a top election official and the deportation of two foreign Odinga advisers has heightened tension for voting which will also see lawmakers and local representatives chosen by Kenyan citizens amid tight security.
The government has deployed more than 150,000 security personnel, including wildlife rangers, to protect 41,000 polling stations.
The winner needs one vote more than 50 percent.
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