Presidential elections started in Cyprus on Sunday, AP news agency reports. All three presidential candidates see themselves as the safest option to lead the country in a time of economic turmoil and a quest for peace with Turkish Cypriots.

Polls show that none of the three candidates will get more than half of the votes, which is an obstacle to a clear victory in the first round. Instead, the top two candidates with the most votes will likely advance to a runoff a week later.

One of the candidates is the 61-year-old leader of the Democratic Party of Cyprus, Averof Neofytou, the second presidential candidate is 63-year-old Andreas Mavroyiannis , who was the main negotiator with the Turkish Cypriots under the former president of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades

The third candidate for the presidency of Cyprus is 49-year-old Nikos Christodoulides, the former Spokesman of the Government and Foreign Minister, who consistently topped all public opinion polls during the election campaign.