With nearly 79 per cent of all votes counted, Kagame has garnered more than 99per cent of the vote, according to the electoral commission.

His two opponents, the chairman of the Green Party, Frank Habineza, and the independent candidate Philippe Mpayimana, have both received well under 1per cent, the electoral commission said.

More than nine million people were eligible to vote on Monday, including two million first-time voters.

Kagame has been president of the country since 2000, but has, in practice, been leading Rwanda since 1994.

Back then, as leader of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), he marched into Rwanda from exile in Uganda and ended the genocide of the Hutu militias against the Tutsi.

He was then defence minister and vice president.

Kagame’s party, RPF, is also likely to emerge as the strongest party in the parliamentary elections.

There are  670 candidates vying for the 80 seats in parliament.

A special feature is that female lawmakers make up a majority in parliament

Human rights organizations have criticized the persecution of opposition figures in the East African country with a population of over 14 million.

The official election results are to be announced by July 27. .

(dpa/NAN)