Kenyans vote in crucial election

Polls have opened in Kenya for the first elections since deadly ethnic violence that killed more than 1,200 people following disputed polls in 2007.

Voters will elect a president, senators and members of parliament, county governors and representatives to the newly-formed county assembly

The two rivals for the presidency, Raila Odinga, outgoing prime minister, and Uhuru Kenyatta, deputy prime minister, have publicly vowed that on Monday there would be no repeat of the violence, which displaced more than 600,000 people.

On the eve of the election, Mwai Kibaki, the outgoing president ,appealed for a peaceful vote.

"I also make a passionate plea for all of us to vote peacefully. Indeed, peace is a cornerstone of our development," Kibaki, barred from seeking a third five-year term, told Kenyans in a televised address before polling day.

But violence began early, with police in the coastal city of Mombasa reporting a night-time raid by a gang of dozens.

Sources reported that it was the work of the Mombasa Republican Council, a secessionist group on Kenya's coast.

With 14 million registered voters heading to the polls, a police spokesman said that 99,000 officers have been deployed to avert a repeat of deadly violence in December 2007.

The police said late Sunday that criminals were planning to dress in police uniforms and disrupt voting in some locations.

Voters on Monday will cast six ballots for the president, parliament, governors, senators, councillors and a special women's list.

About 23,000 observers, including 2,600 international monitors, will be deployed, according to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

But watchdogs such as Human Rights Watch have warned that the risk of renewed political violence is "perilously high." Many Kenyans have left the cities to wait out the vote in their home villages.

Trials are expected to start later this year at the International Criminal Court for Kenyatta and his running mate, William Ruto. If they win, the president and vice president could be absent on trial for years.

Tens of thousands of party loyalists roared their support as Kenyatta and Odinga held competing rallies in central Nairobi on Saturday in the closing hours of campaigning.

Both men have voiced confidence of securing an absolute majority, necessary to avoid a second-round runoff, although with eight candidates in the race many expect a further vote next month.

"I want to promise you that we will change Kenya for the better," said Kenyatta, dancing on stage alongside Ruto.

"Bring even the sick to vote," urged Odinga in turn, after releasing a white dove to symbolise peace.

The electoral commission will have seven days to announce the results.

The 2007-2008 violence exposed widespread disenchantment with the political class, deep tribal divisions and shattered Kenya's image as a beacon of regional stability.

More checks are in place this time to limit vote rigging, while a new constitution devolves powers and has made the poll less of a winner-take-all race.

Kenya's neighbours are watching nervously, after their economies felt the shockwaves when violence five years ago shut down trade routes running through east Africa's biggest economy. Some landlocked states have stockpiled fuel and other materials.

The US and other Western states are worried about the conduct of a poll in a state seen as a vital ally in the regional battle against militant Islam.

Adding to election tensions, al-Shabab fighters, battling Kenyan peacekeeping troops in Somalia, issued a veiled threat days before the vote