In the wake of the presidential election, which saw a duel emerge between Cameroonian President Paul Biya, in power for 43 years, and his former minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary, activists from both sides are claiming victory, even though the results are expected within two weeks.

"We ask everyone to respect the results from the ballot boxes in each polling station. It is the only one we will accept," Tchiroma stressed on Facebook at midday, while opponents fear fraud favoring Mr. Biya, 92, re-elected with more than 70% for more than 20 years and who rules the country with an iron fist.

The authorities have not released the turnout figures or the expected date for the publication of the results, which must be announced by the Constitutional Council before October 26.

On Monday morning, business resumed in the capital, although security forces were deployed at certain strategic intersections, AFP journalists observed.

In the Briqueterie neighborhood, candidate Tchiroma's stronghold in Yaoundé, where hundreds of his supporters chanted "Goodbye Paul Biya, Tchiroma is coming" on Sunday evening, Abdou Mana, 50, remains "awaiting the final results" announced by the Constitutional Council. "We want change, but we don't want problems," he said.

Supporters of both camps are already beginning to claim their victories online.

Congratulatory messages were even sent to Tchiroma Bakary, notably from the coalition of parties Union for Change 2025 which had designated him as the consensus opposition candidate in mid-September, but also from Ateki Saxton who had withdrawn his candidacy in favor of Bello Bouba Maïgari, another former minister.

- Minutes and blackboards -

Tchiroma's campaign manager, Chris Maneng, contacted by telephone by AFP, is nevertheless awaiting the complete compilation of the minutes of the observers he claims to have placed in 90% of the polling stations in order to have "a statistical approach to this victory".

"We have a lead in almost the majority of regions in Cameroon," he said.

In the North region, a major electoral hotbed, where candidate Issa Tchiroma comes from, clashes between supporters and security forces broke out on Sunday evening.

While it is permitted to make public the minutes of each polling station, it is illegal to announce the result of the vote before the Constitutional Council.

"This is the red line that must not be crossed," reiterated the Minister of Territorial Administration, Paul Atanga Nji, during a press conference on Sunday evening, following an election which, according to him, took place "without major incident."

In 2018, during the last presidential election, Maurice Kamto, who came in second in the vote and whose candidacy was rejected this year, declared himself the winner the day after the vote. Kamto was subsequently arrested, and his supporters' rallies were dispersed with tear gas and water cannons, and dozens of protesters were arrested—some remain imprisoned to this day.

Furthermore, according to the electoral code, any challenge to the vote must be submitted "within a maximum of 72 hours from the closing date of the poll." But the results may not be known by then: in 2018, the electoral authorities announced them two weeks after the vote.

Citizens, anxious to "monitor their vote," watched the counting of votes in some polling stations across the country, using telephone and video mode, as they closed on Sunday at 6 p.m. (5 p.m. GMT).

Images of minutes and blackboards recording the results of the vote counts circulated widely on social media, fueling claims of victory for one or other of the leading contenders.