ISTANBUL

Voting closed in the Maldives' key local council elections, alongside a nationwide constitutional referendum that is considered significant for the country’s political framework on Saturday, local media reports said.

Voting closed at 05.00 pm (1200 GMT); however, voters who were in the queue inside the polling stations were allowed to vote, the local English daily Sun reported.

The island country's election authority is likely to announce the results by Saturday midnight or early Sunday.

There were a total of 294,876 eligible voters to cast their votes.

The referendum is tied to a proposed constitutional amendment passed by parliament on Feb. 10. The changes would allow presidential and parliamentary elections to be held simultaneously and establish a fixed start date for parliamentary terms.

President Mohamed Muizzu cast his vote at a polling station in his constituency. He participated in the local council elections, the Women’s Development Committee (WDC) elections, and the public referendum.

The Maldives held local council elections, WDC polls, and a nationwide referendum simultaneously, including a vote on whether to hold presidential and parliamentary elections on the same day.