They were barred from voting in Congo's presidential election, but they voted anyway.

Key points: About 1 million people were barred from voting in Beni and Butembo due to an Ebola outbreak

It is the first democratic election since 1960

Electronic voting machines caused concerns of voting manipulation and fraud

More than 10,000 people lined up in Beni to stage their own presidential election, after the electoral commission made the surprise decision to bar more than 1 million voters in Beni and Butembo last week — cities in eastern Congo affected by a deadly Ebola outbreak.

The vast Central African nation is choosing a successor to President Joseph Kabila after his 17 years in power.

Voting in the Ebola-affected cities of Beni and Butembo was delayed until March, long after Congo's new leader will be inaugurated in January.

Protests followed the decision as people demanded to vote with the rest of the country and attacked Ebola facilities.

The decision was widely criticised as threatening the credibility of the election and putting health workers in danger as people protest.

People in Beni cast paper ballots and sang in Swahili saying "voting is our right and nobody can stop us", and vowed to deliver the results of their own election to the electoral commission.

They washed their hands before voting as a protection against Ebola, which is spread via infected bodily fluids.

"We do not have Ebola. Kabila is worse than Ebola," 24-year-old first time voter Jacob Salamu said.

Elections delayed for two years

Some people who were barred from the election took part in a mock vote. ( AP: Al-hadji Kudra Maliro )

The election had been delayed since late 2016, prompting the Opposition to assert that Mr Kabila was trying to stay on past his mandate.

Lengthy voting delays were reported across Congo on Sunday, marring the presidential election the country hoped would be its first peaceful, democratic transfer of power since independence in 1960.

Congo had the world's second-largest Ebola outbreak in history. ( AP: Al-hadji Kudra Maliro )

Among some 21 candidates, the top opposition leaders are Martin Fayulu and Felix Tshisekedi, who are challenging Mr Kabila's preferred successor, former interior minister Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary.

Mr Shadary is currently under European Union sanctions for human rights sanctions.

Mr Tshisekedi said some polling stations in Kinshasa, the capital, had not even opened six hours after voting began.

He accused Congo's Government of deliberately creating an election day mess to spark a court challenge that could allow Mr Kabila to extend his time in power.

Two people have also reported to have been killed over alleged voting fraud in the eastern town of Walungu.

A police officer shot and killed a young man at the polling place and the crowd then beat the officer to death, according to a politician and a witness.

Electronic machines cause concerns

Some worry that electronic transmission of results by the machines could open the door to manipulation. ( AP: Jerome Delay )

The voting machines that Congo was using for the first time posed a special problem: many of the country's 40 million voters have never used a computer, and electricity is limited.

The Opposition also warned that the machines could be used to manipulate the vote.

The Catholic church's election observer mission said it had received 544 reports of malfunctioning voting machines.

It also reported 115 cases of election observers being kicked out of polling centres or not being allowed access, as well as 44 cases of vote-buying or corruption.

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Nearly 50 polling stations in Kinshasa were idle for hours because lists of registered voters had not been delivered — the sprawling city is an opposition stronghold.

Another observer group, Symotel, reported a multitude of problems including the movement of polling stations to new locations at the last minute, which meant confused voters did not know where to go.

"We knew there would be issues, but this is way beyond what we expected," a spokesperson for the group Luc Lutala said.

Election day in the capital began with a heavy rainstorm that flooded some streets.

A number of Congolese remained in line at poll-closing time, and by law would be able to vote.

Although electoral officials had estimated that people could vote in under a minute, the process was taking several minutes or more per person.

Amid the delays and confusion, frustration grew.

"We came to vote and there is nothing," voter Elvis Bolungu said.

At stake is a country rich in minerals including those crucial to the world's smartphones and electric cars, and yet Congo remains desperately underdeveloped with widespread corruption and insecurity.

AP/Reuters