Gabon's first legislative and local elections since the 2023 military coup that ousted the Bongo dynasty unfolded Saturday with over 900,000 voters choosing 145 parliament members and local councillors, whose picks will shape mayors, senators, and regional leaders in a test of junta head Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema's grip.

Polling stations shut peacefully nationwide, save for one tense Ntoum constituency near the capital where voting was scrapped over candidate clashes; counting kicked off immediately under observer watch, with provisional tallies due Monday.

The ballot, six months after Nguema's landslide presidential win, pits his new Democratic Union of Builders against the long-dominant Gabonese Democratic Party—ousted after 56 years of unchallenged rule—and smaller outfits scrambling for seats.

A second round looms October 11 for runoffs lacking absolute majorities, as the vote probes whether Nguema can lock a parliamentary edge to steer reforms amid economic woes and post-coup stability.

The military takeover ended Ali Bongo's contested 2023 reelection, sparking hopes for transparency, but critics eye the process for fairness in a nation long shadowed by dynastic rule.

With observers monitoring for irregularities, the outcome could cement or challenge Nguema's transition blueprint, as Gabon's 2.3 million citizens weigh change against continuity in oil-rich Central Africa.