Lesotho Police clamped down on early election victory celebrations in Maseru for a few hours on Sunday night, closing streets in the CBD and near the palace, and guarding banks, shops and restaurants.
Opposition party supporters started celebrating in the capital earlier in the day in the belief that their parties, when joined in a coalition, would win Saturday's election.
With 58% of the votes counted on Sunday night Prime Minister Thomas Tabane's party - the All Basotho Convention - had garnered 34 constituency seats, the Democratic Congress ten and the Lesotho Congress for Democracy, two.
South African deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa earlier praised Lesotho for responding positively to the call for peace and stability in the mountain kingdom.
The poll - which was meant to have taken place in two years' time - was brought forward following an attempted coup last August that saw Thabane fleeing to South Africa.
Ramaphosa - who has been mediating in Lesotho as SADC facilitator - told reporters he's happy with how voting went.
