Preliminary results from Cameroon’s presidential election indicate that opposition candidate Issa Tchiroma Bakary is making significant inroads in areas traditionally dominated by incumbent President Paul Biya, Daily Trust has gathered.

Biya, 92, is facing nine challengers, including former allies and cabinet members.

Among them are Bello Bouba Maigari, a former Minister of Tourism, and Bakary, who until recently served as Minister of Employment.

Biya cast his vote at a primary school in Yaoundé, the capital, where he declined to comment on his plans, saying he would wait for the official results.

Early tabulations from several commune councils across the country suggest that Bakary’s party, the Front for the National Salvation of Cameroon (FSNC), is gaining ground against Biya’s ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM).

A journalist monitoring the process, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Bakary, 79, was leading in multiple polling booths across Yaoundé’s seven commune provinces.

“From the results coming from various polling booths across the seven commune provinces in Yaoundé, Bakary is taking an early lead,” the source said.

Each commune reportedly contains between 40 to 50 polling booths, making the capital city a critical battleground.

Bakary, who hails from Garoua in the Far North Region, is also said to have outperformed Bello Bouba Maigari in their shared home region.

However, CPDM is still expected to secure strong support in the Far North and the English-speaking Southwest and Northwest regions, collectively known by separatists as Ambazonia.

Another journalist confirmed that Bakary had won the majority of diaspora votes cast at Cameroonian embassies, with the exception of Moscow.

“It’s unprecedented since the 1992 presidential elections for an opposition candidate to make such early gains,” the journalist noted.

Despite the momentum, the results remain provisional and must be validated by the Constitutional Council, which is expected to announce the final outcome within two weeks.

“Even this result can be changed by the electoral commission or the Supreme Court to install whoever they prefer next,” the source added.

Cameroon operates a single-round voting system, where the candidate with the highest number of votes is declared winner. ( Daily Trust)