But the government dismissed criticism as part of a coup plot.

Innocent Chukwuma, chairman of the biggest local observer group, told Reuters voting was either delayed for hours or did not happen at all in some areas.

“We are going to call for a rerun of elections. You cannot use the result from half of the country to announce a new president.”

The vote on Saturday in Africa’s most populous nation was marred by violence, fraud and intimidation. First results on Sunday from three states indicated continued dominance by the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP), as expected.

Its candidate, Umaru Yar’Adua, was handpicked by outgoing President Olusegun Obasanjo.

“This is the worst election ever in Nigeria...They have no alternative than to cancel the election altogether,” said outgoing Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, arch-enemy of Obasanjo.

The electoral commission acknowledged late arrival of materials in some parts of Nigeria but said it was proud of the election. “The poll we had yesterday was free and fair. Nobody was molested,” commission chief Maurice Iwu told reporters.

The government said coup plotters were trying to annul the election to wreck democracy, after failing to blow up electoral headquarters on Saturday with a petrol tanker. The tanker stopped short and failed to explode.

The plotters “failed to get the international community to label Nigeria as a failed state and also incite the rank and file of the Nigerian armed forces with the sole aim of scuttling the presidential elections,” Information Minister Frank Nweke said in a statement.

Government spokesman Uba Sani accused Senate leader Ken Nnamani of trying to incite chaos after the election.

Nnamani dismissed what he called “trumped up” charges and said he would never support a coup.

“These people have no shame,” he told Reuters, saying the conduct of the election had abdicated Nigeria’s role as an example for other African countries.

European Union observers have also expressed concern about Saturday’s vote, saying they had witnessed violence, ballot stuffing and a big shortfall in voting slips.

Polling stations in some areas did not open until just before the closing time of 5 p.m. (1600).

Around 16 people are so far known to have died in violence connected to Saturday’s vote, well below the 50 killed around state polls a week earlier.

First results in the northwestern state of Sokoto and southern Akwa Ibom and Rivers showed the PDP ahead, an outcome expected to be repeated across much of Nigeria.

Clear results are not expected before Monday.

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