Libyans vote in 1st election after Gadhafi
Jubilant Libyan voters marked a major step toward democracy after decades of erratic one-man rule, casting their ballots Saturday in the first parliamentary election after last year’s overthrow and killing of longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi. But the joy was tempered by boycott calls, the burning of ballots and other violence in the country’s restive east.
In the capital Tripoli, residents turned out in droves to cast votes for the 200-seat legislature. Lines began to form outside polling centers more than an hour before they were scheduled to open. Policemen and soldiers were guarding the centers, searching voters as well as election workers.
“I have a strange but beautiful feeling today,” said dentist Adam Thabet, waiting outside a polling center. “We are free at last after years of fear. We knew this day was coming, but we were afraid it could take long to come.”