Voters in the Maldives queue up to cast their vote for a new leader - 20 months after their first democratically elected president was forced from power.

Mohamed Nasheed, seen here casting his vote in the city centre, was ousted in February 2012 in what his supporters say was a coup.

He hopes to return to office and end a period of unrest that has tarnished the Maldive's image.

Nasheed is running against three rivals, including this man Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik, who took over as president after his ouster.

But his main rival is expected to be this man, Abdulla Yameen, a half-brother of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who ruled the Indian Ocean archipelago for 30 years - some say as a dictator.

The top two candidates in Saturday's poll with contest again in a run-off poll on Sept 28, if the winner fails to secure more than 50 percent of votes in the first round.