Rivals in Tight Race for the Presidency

Former military ruler Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo and his rival Olu Falae appeared neck and neck as early results trickled in from Nigeria’s landmark presidential election. The electoral commission said it would start to announce official results today. Obasanjo appeared to have lost the vote in his home state of Ogun. Falae also seemed to have done better than expected in unofficial results from southeastern areas. The vote capped military ruler Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar’s plan to restore democracy after he took over after dictator Sani Abacha’s death in June. Abubakar arrived at a polling site too late for accreditation and did not vote.