Voters in the Democratic Republic of Congo headed to the polls Monday, Nov. 28, 2011.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

In Goma, the main city in the east of Congo, voters began arriving at polling stations on foot and motorcycle taxis before sunrise.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

Residents of Goma wait in line on Election Day, only the second time in this troubled country’s history that the entire population has been able to vote.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

While the eastern Kivus have so far remained relatively quiet, bloody clashes have been breaking out between the opposition and police in the capital, Kinshasa, for months.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

Already several people have been killed at political rallies and the security forces of President Joseph Kabila have been widely accused of torturing opposition supporters.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

Incumbent Joseph Kabila, who took over after his father died in 2001 and was elected in Congo's first democratic election five years later, is one of 11 presidential contenders.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

Goma, located in a region where many areas are still controlled by armed groups, has been flagged as a possible election hotspot.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

Voting did not go entirely smoothly, with many polling stations opening late, some missing ballots and countless people unable to find their names on the voting lists.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

Many residents of Goma and North Kivu province, where 90 percent backed incumbent President Kabila in 2006, are disillusioned with the current administration and looking to the opposition for change.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

Still, Kabila is widely expected to secure re-election as a consequence of his opponents' failure to rally around a single candidate.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

There are fears that election disputes could spark more violence in this country, where militias and rebel groups still terrorize citizens in the country's east.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]

Soldiers patrol the streets of Goma at night amidst scattered reports of violence in parts of the country.
- [Nichole Sobecki/GlobalPost]