Voting for the presidential election in the Maldives began on Sunday, with more than a quarter of a million people eligible to vote.

Maldivians lined up to vote before polling booths opened at 8:00 a.m. local time (0300 GMT) in the capital Male, where President Abdulla Yameen and his challenger Ibrahim Mohamed Solih were due to cast their ballots.

Votes will be counted soon after polling stations close on Sunday and preliminary results are expected to be clear by midnight (1900 GMT).

The candidate that gets the majority of votes will claim victory, and be sworn in on November 17.

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