A woman who joined Namibia’s independence movement in the 1970s is a strong contender to become its first female leader as the country votes in a presidential election.

Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah is aiming to become Namibia's first female leader amid a presidential election marked by economic hardships and a desire for change in the southern African nation. As the ruling SWAPO party faces waning support,

Swapo’s Uahekua Herunga rubbished assertions that the defeat of Kamala Harris in the United States does not augur well for Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah’s presidential hopes.

This as Namibia takes to the polls. Namibia’s Vice President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah (72) could be at the country’s helm. The country's South West Africa People's Organisation's (SWAPO) has been in power for 34 years.

Ndaitwah, 72, is the current vice president and the ruling SWAPO party's candidate for president. She's already in the lead after special voting among citizens overseas and the armed forces.

Despite the many challenges, Nandi-Ndaitwah has “always believed in teamwork, that is what made me achieve what I have achieved.”

If things work out as Namibia’s long-time governing party hopes, the country will be electing its first female head of state this week. But a mood of disillusionment with liberation movements in southern Africa, coupled with the anti-incumbency feeling in many parts of the world, may pose a threat to what would be an historic achievement.

By Nyasha Nyaungwa WINDHOEK (Reuters) -Voters waited in long queues outside polling stations in Namibia's capital Windhoek on Wednesday morning to cast their ballots for a new president and parliament in what could be a tough election to win for the ruling SWAPO party.

A 72-year-old woman who joined Namibia's independence movement in the 1970s is a strong contender to become its first female leader as the country votes in a presidential election on Wednesday. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah is the current vice president and the ruling SWAPO party's candidate for president and leads after the results of special early voting among citizens overseas and the armed forces were announced earlier this month.