Greek Cypriots began casting ballots at 7:00 a.m. (0400 GMT) on Sunday to elect a new 56-member parliament for a five-year term.

A total of 487 candidates from 10 political parties or movements have participated in election campaigns which ended midnight Friday.

Final results are expected to be announced around 8:30 p.m. ( 1730 GMT) on Sunday.

Seats will be allocated under the system of proportional representation.

More than 500,000 people are voting in Sunday's elections in 1, 216 polling stations throughout the republic, 469 of them in the capital of Nicosia.

Under the 1960 Constitution, the Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots should vote separately.

Turkish Cypriot parliament members withdrew unilaterally from the parliament in 1964 following an intercommunal strife.

For the first time since then, Turkish Cypriots can vote in the election and one Turkish Cypriot is contesting a seat.

This has been the ninth parliamentary election since the Republic of Cyprus was established in 1960.

Source: Xinhua