Maldives votes, incumbent Yameen expected to cement grip on power
Maldives election
The Maldives voted on Sunday in an election in which hardline President Abdulla Yameen is expected to cement his grip on power but which opposition and international groups have criticised for a lack of transparency and suppression of dissent.
The Muslim-majority Indian Ocean nation has become a theater of rivalry between its traditional partner, India, and China, which has backed Yameen's infrastructure drive, and prompted concern in the West about Beijing's increasing influence.
Yameen's government has jailed many of his main rivals, including former president and his half brother, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, on charges ranging from terrorism to corruption.
The opposition's joint candidate, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, known as Ibu, told supporters he was confident of victory.
More than a quarter of a million people were eligible to vote in around 400 polling booths across the coral islands, best known in the West for their luxury resorts.
Hundreds of people queued outside polling stations in the capital, Male, early on Sunday. On some islands, people started queuing on Saturday night.
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