Opposition groups have already cried foul. The candidate widely expected to win is Mahamat Idriss Deby, the man who seized power the day rebels shot and killed his long-ruling father, Idriss Deby, in April 2021.

But Chad's Western allies have largely stayed quiet and kept watch, hoping, analysts say, that at the very least, the vote will deliver a relatively stable state in a region hit by militant violence where Russia is also pushing for influence.

Among those Western countries is Chad's former colonial ruler France which still has war planes and 1 000 troops there, most recently helping Chad and its neighbours combat the Islamist fighters of Boko Haram.

--Reuters--