A woman in Timor-Leste casts her vote at a polling station during the election in Dili on May 12 (Photo: EPA-EFE) Hanoi (VNA) – Voters in Timor Leste went to the polls on May 12 to cast their ballots in the second general election in less than one year of the Southeast Asian nation.
Some 784,000 people have registered to vote across 13 municipalities and voters turned out early to cast their ballot.
The voting stations opened at 7.00 (local time) and was to close at 15:00 the same day. Results of the election will be announced next week.
Experts have showed concern about security of the election as clashes occurred during election campaigns between supporters of the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor, better known as Fretilin, and those of the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT).
The Fretilin won the last election held in July 2017 by a narrow margin, forcing it to join with a smaller party to form a minority government. The country had suffered a political impasse in recent months.
In January, Timor Leste’s President Francisco Lu Olo dissolved parliament and called for new elections.
After the country gained independence in 2002, Timor Leste, a small island nation with 1.2 million people, still faces various issues of economy, poverty, embezzlement and oil dependence.
Surveys showed that CNRT and Fretilin will gain a majority of votes in this election.-VNA
