Kenyans await vote in presidential election

Kenyans are waiting for the results of a close but calm presidential election in which the turnout was lower than usual.

The election was likely to be the final attempt by longtime opposition leader Raila Odinga, who was backed by former rival and outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta on his fifth attempt. The Deputy President William Ruto, who fell out with the president earlier in the decade, is the other top contender.

Voters have expressed little hope for real change and frustration with rising prices and widespread corruption in East Africa's economic hub. Both top candidates are well-known to Kenyans, Odinga as a democracy campaigner and former political detainee and Ruto as a wealthy populist who plays up his humble youth as a contrast to the dynasties that produced Odinga and Kenyatta.

The president's backing of Odinga cut across ethnic lines that have long defined elections and contributed to violence. This time, there is no candidate from Kenya's largest ethnic group, Kikuyu, though both top candidates chose Kikuyu running mates.