Citizens of East Timor, one of the world's youngest and poorest nations, voted Saturday in the the second presidential election since the country won its independence from Indonesia in 2002.

Saturday's election ended peacefully, with no unrest reported – a stark contrast from the previous presidential vote in 2006, which nearly plunged the country into civil war.

Eleven candidates are challenging incumbent president and Nobel Peace laureate Jose Ramos-Horta. But the election was largely seen as a three-way contest between Mr. Horta, Francisco Guterres from the main opposition Fretilin party and Jose Maria de Vasconcelos, the former army chief.

A second round of balloting between the two top vote-winners will be held if no one wins a majority. Election results were expected late Saturday, but observers expect it will be days before all the ballots are counted.

If the presidential election and an upcoming parliamentary vote in June run smoothly, the contingent of U.N. and Australian troops now keeping the peace in East Timor is scheduled to pull out of the country by the end of this year.