The pre-election period has been marred by violence, forcing the Electoral Commission of Zambia to impose a 10-day ban on campaigning in some parts of the southern African country.
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Zambians queued round the block in Lusaka on Thursday as voting began for a new president and legislators in what is expected to be a tough battle, as slow growth and weak commodity prices weigh on Africa’s second-biggest copper producer.
Lungu and Hichilema, have both said they are confident of outright victory.
Voting got off to an anxious start at 6 a.m. (0400 GMT) at one polling station in the capital, Lusaka, with police stepping in to control a few restive people waiting in a long queue that stretched nearly half way around the block.
Katherine Mutya, 38, spent three hours in line waiting to cast her vote.
Voters said the long queues could be a sign that Zambians wanted change.
Less than 28,000 votes separated the two men the last time they squared off in a snap poll 19 months ago, after President Michael Sata died in office.
This year’s election in Zambia has stirred emotions between supporters of the ruling Patriotic Front (PF) party of President Edgar Lungu and those of the United Party for National Development (UPND) led by Hakainde Hichilema, popularly known as HH.
“I’m looking at the cost of living”, said Frederick Kabwita, a 43-year-old shop owner who voted in Lusaka’s Northmead suburb.
The opposition has accused the PF of not being able to contain a crisis created by falling prices of copper – the country’s main revenue earner – and drought-induced electricity shortages, which triggered a steep fall of the kwacha currency and spiralling inflation.
At some point, the Zambian Electoral Commission (ZEC) had to suspend campaigns in the capital Lusaka for 10 days as a means of easing tensions.
Economist-turned-businessman Hichilema says Lungu, a former lawyer, lacks the expertise to manage the economy.
“We will bring knowledge to the table, we are business people”, he said on the eve of voting. “We understand the economy, this economy is broken”.
Lungu insists his government has made strides in improving Zambia’s road network, commissioning new power plants and investing in agriculture with limited resources.
“I have been on probation for one year, six months and I think I have done very well”.
“There is an overwhelming response as you can see and I am sure we shall have good voter turnout”, he told Xinhua. “But I will not allow somebody to come to State House (through) violence or intimidation”, he added.
For the first time, a candidate must win more than 50 percent of the vote or face a runoff election.
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Asked about whether the elections will be free and fair, the head of the AU Observer Mission (AUEOM), former Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan said he was optimistic that the process would be satisfactory.
