By Gray Phombeah BBC, Mombasa

The piercing sound of the muezzin, calling all Muslims to prayer, shatters the morning peace.

The sun slowly climbs over the Indian Ocean and the sea water begins to subside and retreat from the beaches.

It is Thursday morning, 24 hours before polling stations open.

It is time for the final push, as the law requires the campaigns to end a day before the polling, at midnight.

Opposition favourite

A noisy procession of opposition supporters, led by trucks and minibuses, passes through the centre of town, chanting "Yote Yawenzekana Bila Moi", meaning "All is possible without Moi".

I hit the pot-holed pavements on Digo Road and then Moi Avenue, mingling with men clad in white floor-length cotton shirts, known here as "khanzu" and women hidden inside black veils or "buibui".

Their chanting is overwhelming.

Polls put Kibaki ahead of his rivals

For long the people of Mombasa seemed to be unfathomable under their traditional garbs.

But there is little doubt this morning that they have already made up their minds about who or which party to vote for.

A phone-in poll by a local radio had almost 90 callers saying the main opposition group's candidate would win the presidential race.

I would not want to be in the shoes of the ruling party, Kanu, right now.

Mosquitoes

Later in the evening, it will be time for door-to-door campaigning, when money changes hands under the cover of night, when pleas and promises are made in whispers, and a little bit of arm-twisting and veiled threats.

Away from Mombasa, the two presidential frontrunners, Kanu's Uhuru Kenyatta and the main opposition group's Mwai Kibaki, are winding down their campaigns in central Kenya.

In the final battle for the minds of urban voters, they have opted for Op-Eds in a national newspaper.

Kenyatta says he is ready for a fresh start

Mr Kenyatta reiterates his campaign theme: vote for a fresh start.

Mr Kibaki promises a liberated media that will benefit all Kenyans.

Not to be outdone, Ford People's candidate, Simeon Nyachae, says, in his article, that reconciliation is key to Kenya's progress.

I know it is going to be a long night, checking out the polling stations and setting up our sat phone before the polling stations open, most of the time fighting off swarming mosquitoes.

If mosquitoes' bites were votes I could be the next president by now.