Namibia: Voters waited in long queues outside polling stations in the capital Windhoek on Wednesday morning to cast ballots for a new president and parliament in what could be a tough election to win for the ruling SWAPO party.

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.

The southwest African state's vice president is in the running to become the first female president. SWAPO's Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah's main rival is Panduleni Itula of the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC).

Namibia's vice president was among the first voters in elections Wednesday that could see her become the desert nation's first woman leader, even as her ruling SWAPO party faces a

Namibians will vote on Wednesday in what is expected to be the most competitive election yet for the ruling SWAPO party, which has governed the southern African nation for 34 years.

Namibians go to the polls on Wednesday to elect a new president and parliament in what could be a tough election for the ruling SWAPO party, which is seeking to extend its 34-year rule. SWAPO has governed the southern African nation since leading it to independence from apartheid South Africa in 1990.

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.