Nigeria has continued counting ballots in its presidential election, with the incumbent Goodluck Jonathan facing a strong challenge from former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari.

The election commission (INEC) said it hoped to announce the winner on March 30.

The UN has praised the poll despite technical hitches, protests and violence linked to Boko Haram.

Voting was extended until Sunday in some parts of Nigeria after problems with new electronic card readers.

President Goodluck Jonathan was among those unable to cast his vote using the technology, which was introduced to prevent fraud.

His Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which had opposed the card readers, called it a “huge national embarrassment”.

The INEC chair, Attahiru Jega, stressed that only a fraction of the 150,000 card readers being used nationwide had failed.

The vote had been delayed by six weeks because of the insurgency by Boko Haram militants.

The Islamists attacked polling stations in north-eastern states, with a curfew declared in Bauchi State after fighting between the security forces and the group.

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon praised the “determination and resilience” of Nigerian voters, despite the reports of attacks by Boko Haram and others.

Ban Ki-moon said in a statement voting had been “largely peaceful and orderly”.

His comments have been echoed by the regional bloc Ecowas, which urged Nigerians to accept the result.

There has been tension in the southern Rivers State, where thousands protested against alleged killings of opposition workers and voting irregularities.

INEC said it was “concerned” by the complaints, adding that one of their offices was set on fire during the unrest.

Results of the voting were expected to arrive overnight but so far there is no official indication of which party is in the lead.

The PDP has dominated Nigerian politics since 1999, but Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s All Progressives Congress is viewed as a serious challenge.

Voters have also elected members of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

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Voting in parts of Nigeria have been extended until Sunday, March 29, after delays and a number of attacks.

Technical problems with new biometric cards slowed down voter registration, even affecting President Goodluck Jonathan.

More than 20 people have reportedly been killed in various attacks by unknown gunmen.

Incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan is facing a strong challenge from Muhammadu Buhari.

The election is said to be the most closely fought since independence.

It was postponed from mid-February to allow the army time to recapture territory from the Islamist militants of Boko Haram.

The two main candidates had pledged to prevent violence during and in the aftermath of the elections.

Several hours after voting started, reports came in of violent incidents at polling stations in which at least 24 were reported to have been killed.

Thousands of Nigerians turned out to vote, despite threats from Boko Haram to disrupt the poll.

Voters are also electing members of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

According to the Transitional Monitoring Group (TMG), the largest body observing the elections, voting had started in 75% of polling stations, while 92% had the materials they need to start the process.

Voters need to register using biometric cards with their fingerprints before they can cast their vote.

However, there have been problems with card readers at many polling stations.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said the accreditation process had “gone on well in several places”, but was “slow” or had “not commenced at all” in others.

Goodluck Jonathan tried for some 50 minutes to register in his home village of Otuoke, before coming back a second time. When the electronic registration failed again, he had to be accredited manually before casting his ballot paper.

Problems were also reported from the north’s biggest city of Kano, where thousands of voters waited for election officials and voting materials to arrive.

Gen. Muhammadu Buhari did not have any problems registering in his hometown, Daura.

Attacks were reported in north-eastern Gombe state, including incidents where gunmen opened fire on voters at polling stations.

It is unclear whether the attacks were the work of Boko Haram militants or political thugs.

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