Angola's ruling party says victory 'inescapable'

Angola's ruling party said Thursday it won a majority in the country's election with five million votes counted so far, opening the way for the defense minister to succeed President Jose Eduardo dos Santos after his 38-year rule reported. Its support has waned due to widespread political cronyism, though many Angolans remain loyal to the party that ended 27 years of civil war in 2002.

The main opposition challenger in the election is the UNITA party, a former rebel group that battled the MPLA in Angola's civil war.

Polling stations opened on Wednesday across the country - a former Portuguese colony - amid reports of a slow start in the nation's capital of Luanda, where Dos Santos and his hand-picked successor and front-runner, Defense Minister Joao Lourenco, are due to cast their ballots later in the day.

UNITA has said it would be willing to form a coalition with other opposition groups in order to govern.

One thousand and three hundred and ten (1,310) voters, namely in the provinces of Moxico, Lunda Norte and Benguela will only be able to vote on Saturday, August 26, informed on Thursday the Spokeswoman of the National Electoral Commission (CNE), Júlia Ferreira.

Six parties - represented by six presidential candidates - participated in the elections and the victor will have to obtain majority of seats in parliament after votes are converted into mandates using the proportional representation method.

Angolan rights activists have alleged that the ruling party unfairly used state machinery ahead of the election, noting that most media coverage focused on the MPLA campaign.

Lourenco, 63, has pledged to fight graft and is seen as a symbol of stability and even incremental change.

This is done using the Hare Quota which is calculated by dividing the total number of votes gained by each party by the number of seats.

Angolans are still awaiting preliminary election results after polling stations closed on Wednesday night.

Questions have been raised as to how much power Lourenco will have if he wins, given veteran leader Jose Eduardo dos Santos, 74, will continue as head of the MPLA and have potentially a sweeping say over decision-making.

His daughter, Isabel, heads national energy company Sonangol, which runs Africa's second biggest oil industry.