The parliamentary election, largely a race between the governing MPLA and the rival UNITA party, follows a month-long campaign marked by opposition allegations of intimidation and bias, but free of the violence that marred recent African polls.
The streets of the capital Luanda were festooned in a sea of red and black, the colors of the MPLA, as voters prepared to cast ballots at polling stations, which open at 0600 GMT. Just under half of Angola's 17 million people are registered to vote.
"It's a step forward that will enable the people to elect their candidates. We want things to go well this time around. Hopefully there will be no unrest," said a 32-year-old MPLA supporter who identified himself only as Emanuel.
Angola's last brush with an election ended in disaster in 1992 when UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi withdrew from the second round of a presidential poll after accusing MPLA leader Jose Eduardo dos Santos of cheating his way to victory.
Savimbi then led his supporters back into the bush where the rebel group resumed a civil war. The 27-year conflict ended in 2002 after Savimbi was killed in an ambush.
The Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), which took power after independence from Portugal in 1975, is brimming with confidence as it heads into the election against a fragmented and underfunded opposition.
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Published by Mike Hitchen, Mike Hitchen Consulting
