Can the world's oldest leader keep his title and woo a country of youthful voters?
The world's most aged leader - nonagenarian Paul Biya - has assured Cameroon's electorate "the best is still to come" as he pursues his eighth consecutive presidential term on Sunday.
The nonagenarian has stayed in power for over four decades - another seven-year term could extend his reign for 50 years until he will be almost 100.
Campaign Issues
He defied broad demands to resign and drew backlash for attending just one rally, using the majority of the political race on a ten-day personal visit to Europe.
A backlash over his reliance on an artificial intelligence created political commercial, as his rivals sought supporters in person, prompted his quick return to the northern region after coming back.
Youth Voters and Unemployment
This indicates for the large portion of the population, Biya is the only president they experienced - more than 60% of the nation's 30 million inhabitants are under the quarter century mark.
Young advocate Marie Flore Mboussi urgently wants "new blood" as she believes "longevity in power inevitably leads to a sort of laziness".
"Following four decades, the people are weary," she says.
Youth unemployment has been a particular discussion topic for most of the aspirants competing in the political race.
Almost forty percent of young residents aged from 15-35 are unemployed, with 23% of young graduates encountering difficulties in securing official jobs.
Opposition Candidates
Apart from youth unemployment, the electoral process has also stirred debate, particularly regarding the removal of an opposition leader from the presidential race.
The removal, approved by the legal authority, was broadly condemned as a tactic to block any strong challenge to President Biya.
A dozen contenders were cleared to vie for the country's top job, including an ex-government official and Bello Bouba Maigari - each former Biya associates from the northern region of the nation.
Election Challenges
In Cameroon's English-speaking Northwest and Southwest territories, where a protracted insurgency persists, an voting prohibition lockdown has been established, stopping commercial operations, movement and learning.
Rebel groups who have imposed it have warned to target individuals who does vote.
Since 2017, those seeking to create a separate nation have been clashing with official military.
The fighting has to date resulted in at minimum 6k people and forced almost half a million residents from their homes.
Vote Outcome
Following the election, the highest court has 15 days to reveal the findings.
The government official has previously cautioned that none of the contenders is authorized to claim success beforehand.
"Those who will attempt to declare outcomes of the presidential election or any unofficial win announcement in violation of the laws of the republic would have broken rules and must prepare to receive penalties commensurate to their crime."
