East Timor, Asia's youngest nation, votes for president

Election officers transport ballot boxes to the polling station of the East Timorese presidential election at Dili, East Timor, March 18, 2022. REUTERS/Lirio da Fonseca

DILI (Reuters) -Polls have closed in East Timor after Asia's youngest nation held its fifth presidential election since independence on Saturday, with political stability and economic security at the forefront of voters' minds.

The 16 presidential hopefuls include former resistance fighter and incumbent President Francisco "Lu Olo" Guterres as well as independence figure and Nobel laureate Jose Ramos-Horta and a former Catholic priest.