DR Congo's leading presidential candidates

The Democratic Republic of Congo holds a presidential election on Wednesday in which 19 candidates, including the incumbent Felix Tshisekedi, are running for the highest office in the impoverished but mineral-rich central African nation. 

Here are the main contenders:

 Felix Tshisekedi 
Tshisekedi, 60, took office in 2019 after a disputed election that numerous observers said he had lost.

Trumpeting progress on development and security, he has urged voters to hand him a second term to "consolidate his gains".

Although the economy has grown, inflation is soaring and unemployment remains the norm. 

The DRC is one of the poorest nations in the world, riddled with corruption, which Tshisekedi vowed to tackle upon becoming president. 

But his record is patchy and many analysts say his priority is consolidating his political position.

The east of the country is also mired in bloody conflict, with Tshisekedi regularly accusing opposition figures of working for foreign interests.

During a recent rally, he likened Rwandan President Paul Kagame -- whom he accuses of backing the M23 rebellion in the east -- to Adolf Hitler.

Moise Katumbi 
Katumbi, a 58-year-old millionaire businessman, is an avid football fan and longtime opposition figure who is considered by most analysts to be the most serious threat to the incumbent. 

He was barred from running in the 2018 election that brought Tshisekedi to power, and has urged supporters to keep a close eye on the voting process, "even if it requires sleeping on the spot".

Katumbi has sought to highlight his construction of roads and schools in Katanga province during his tenure as governor, and promised to roll out similar projects nationwide.

He was charged with land-grabbing and recruiting mercenaries under former president Joseph Kabila and went into de facto exile in South Africa before returning to DR Congo in 2019. 

Since announcing his presidential bid last year, Katumbi has been followed by trouble including the arrest of one of his main advisors and the murder of a close associate. 

Debate about his legitimacy continues to swirl in the DRC, with some candidates on the campaign trail questioning Katumbi's Congolese nationality.

 Martin Fayulu 
Supporters of Fayulu, 67, call him the president-elect, arguing that he was the real winner of the 2018 vote that brought Tshisekedi to power.

Fayulu came second in that election with 34.8 percent of the vote, but he denounced an "electoral coup" that denied him victory thanks to a back-room deal between ex-president Joseph Kabila and Tshisekedi.

Analysts say that Fayulu remains popular but that his procrastination and attitude could lose him popularity points among Congolese voters.

A former executive at the oil major ExxonMobil, he initially held off announcing his bid for the top job, claiming the dice would once again be loaded for the December 20 elections.

 Denis Mukwege 
Nobel Peace Prize winner Mukwege, 68, has pledged justice, dignity and credibility in his campaign for the presidency.

The surgical gynaecologist, who won the Nobel for his work with rape victims, may be a political newcomer but he has long been a government critic.

Promising to end poverty, conflict and corruption in the central African country, analysts say Mukwege's outsider status is both an asset and a handicap. 

His public image is clean but relatively obscure in the vast country.

Mukwege is best known for founding the Panzi hospital and foundation in conflict-torn eastern DRC, after witnessing the horrific injuries and diseases suffered by rape survivors.