BAMAKO, Mali — Reports of military abuses and extravagant spending have shadowed him. His term in office has been pockmarked by terrorist attacks on peacekeepers and even a luxury hotel. Critics of Mali’s president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, have taken to chanting, “Father must quit.”

But at a recent campaign rally as he runs for re-election in a vote on Sunday, Mr. Keïta, 73, stood in a crisp white flowing gown before a throng of supporters in Bamako and defiantly responded, “Father won’t quit.”

Malians are heading to the polls when their nation is rife with insecurity, as Islamist groups launch frequent and increasingly bold attacks. Late last month, a suicide bomber drove into the headquarters of the G5 Sahel, a regional military force focused on rooting out terrorism, killing three people. The United Nations’ peacekeeping mission in Mali is considered the most dangerous in the world.

Yet Mr. Keïta, with a flush campaign fund and a raft of challengers, is likely to be re-elected, analysts say, in part because the violence could keep many people from the polls. Speaking about security issues, the president recently told journalists that Mali suffered from only “pockets of violence.”