UPDATE - Togo votes in legislative, regional elections

ADDS DETAILS, CHANGES HEADLINE AND DECK, EDITS THROUGHOUT

By James Tasamba

KIGALI, Rwanda (AA) - Voters in Togo headed to the polls on Monday to elect lawmakers and regional councilors.

Polling opened at 7 a.m. local time and will close at 4 p.m. for 4.2 million voters eligible to cast their ballots across the West African country.

Voters will elect 113 members of parliament and 179 regional councilors at about 14,271 polling stations.

The Independent National Electoral Commission is expected to announce provisional results within six days of the vote.

Former Gambian Vice President Fatoumata Jallow-Tambajang, who led a team of 40 observers from the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS, urged the nation to ensure peaceful polls.

The government has warned the public against the publication of unofficial results or incorrect information with the aim of sowing discord.

A team of observers from the African Union, and the International Organization of La Francophonie are also monitoring the polls.

The new legislature will serve a six-year term as per the new constitutional amendments, up from a previous five-year term.

Two-week campaigns for legislative and regional elections ended on Sunday.

The election pits the ruling Union for the Republic (UNIR) party headed by President Faure Gnassingbe, and the opposition. Over 2,300 candidates are contesting for the 113 parliamentary seats.

The government announced a public holiday on Monday and the closing of and borders to facilitate the smooth running of the elections.

The polls come amid a tense political climate after the National Assembly earlier this month approved a new constitution, switching the country from a presidential to a parliamentary system.

The constitutional reforms triggered a crackdown on protests organized by activists and opposition leaders, who sought to stop Gnassingbe from signing the bill into law, which effectively scraps direct elections of future presidents.

The opposition views the new constitution as a ploy to allow Gnassingbe to prolong his grip on power when his term ends in 2025, a claim dismissed by the ruling party.

The ruling UNIR party has an overwhelming majority in the outgoing parliament, but the main opposition National Alliance for Change hopes to make a difference.

The election had been scheduled on April 20 before it was postponed by the president, citing the need to carry out "consultations" on the disputed constitutional reforms. The opposition boycotted the 2018 general election.

Gnassingbe's father Gnassingbe Eyadema ruled the nation for almost four decades before the son succeeded him with the support of the military.