Presidential election votings start in Finland

HELSINKI -- Finland's presidential election kicked off on Sunday as polling stations opened at 9 am local time (0700 GMT). Finns are going to cast their votes until 8 pm (1800 GMT) to elect a president for a six-year term.

Nine candidates are contesting to be the successor to the incumbent, Sauli Niinisto. After two terms in the presidency, he is not running.

According to Finland's constitution, the president can be elected to only two consecutive terms. If none of the candidates receives more than half of the votes in the first round, a second round will be held between the top two runners on Feb 11.

The presidential candidate of the National Coalition, former Prime Minister Alexander Stubb, and independent Green candidate, former Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, have been leading runners in the opinion polls. Stubb has been leading the polls since November but the candidate of the Finns Party and Speaker of the Parliament of Finland Jussi Halla-aho has been gaining popularity in recent weeks.

According to the Ministry of Justice, which oversees the election arrangements, the results would be available around 10 pm local time (2000 GMT) on Sunday. National broadcaster Yle is expected to issue a prognosis earlier.