A decorated polling station in the capital Kigali, August 9 2010.The festive decor was in stark contrast to the dour mood of oppression hanging over the polls. The elaborate decorations seemed to reinforce that Rwanda’s democracy is essentially a dressed-up dictatorship.

A decorated polling station in the capital Kigali, August 9 2010.The festive decor was in stark contrast to the dour mood of oppression hanging over the polls. The elaborate decorations seemed to reinforce that Rwanda’s democracy is essentially a dressed-up dictatorship.

A decorated polling station in the capital Kigali, August 9 2010.The festive decor was in stark contrast to the dour mood of oppression hanging over the polls. The elaborate decorations seemed to reinforce that Rwanda’s democracy is essentially a dressed-up dictatorship.

A decorated polling station in the capital Kigali, August 9 2010.The festive decor was in stark contrast to the dour mood of oppression hanging over the polls. The elaborate decorations seemed to reinforce that Rwanda’s democracy is essentially a dressed-up dictatorship.

An election poster for President Paul Kagame hangs from a door in the hills outside the capital Kigali, August 8 2010.