The Congo Vote (Update)

Millions of Congolese voted yesterday, hopeful that this exercise in democracy will not prove futile, and that a change will bring an end to war and chaos. Results will not be known for a month, but the favorite to win the first democratic Congolese election in nearly half a century is current President Joseph Kabila, which begs the question of what sort of change will follow. Perhaps the presupposition is that a free and hopefully fair election will grant Kabila both legitimacy and a mandate to act for the greater good. We can hope, anyway.