Nigeria: Counting to resume, Buhari up by 2.5 million

Abuja - Nigerian opposition contender Muhammadu Buhari built a lead of over 2.5 million votes with only six states uncounted on Monday, raising the prospect of a stunning ballot box victory for a man who first came to power three decades ago via a military coup.

The 72-year-old general who has campaigned as a born-again democrat intent on cleaning up the corrupt politics of Africa's most populous nation notched up 12.9 million votes, according to a tally collated by Reuters from 30 of Nigeria's 36 states.

This compared to 10.2 million votes for President Goodluck Jonathan, a one-time zoology professor whose five years at the helm of the continent's biggest economy and top oil producer have been plagued by corruption scandals and a bloody insurgency by Islamist Boko Haram militants.