Voter turnout was estimated at 54%, according to the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions (CTRI). There were no serious incidents reported during Saturday’s vote.
The final results will be announced by the Constitutional Court.
As he voted, the military leader hailed the referendum as a “great step forward”, adding that Gabonese were “coming to vote in a transparent fashion”.
Prior to the vote, the transitional authorities described it as a crucial step towards the return to constitutional order in the oil-rich country.
The referendum paves the way for the holding of elections tentatively scheduled for August next year – two years after Nguema took power to topple President Ali Bongo Odimba, whose family had ruled the country for decades.
The draft constitution establishes a seven-year term, renewable once, replacing a five year-term that had no limits and which allowed for dynastic rule.
It also bars members of a president’s family from running for the country’s top job and also requires candidates to be exclusively Gabonese and have a Gabonese spouse.
This effectively bars the deposed leader, who is married to a French woman.
It is being seen as an attempt to end the family succession phenomenon engineered by the Bongo family, which maintained a 55-year dynasty.
Bongo had ruled for 14 years before he was toppled. He took office after the death of his father who had been president for 41 years.
The new law removes the prime minister’s position and introduces two vice-president roles.
While some have hailed the draft law, others have warned it could concentrate too much power in the presidency.
Despite Gabon’s oil wealth and vast forests, one third of its 2.4 million people live below the poverty line, according to the UN.
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