Cypriots will return to the ballot box on Feb. 4 to choose a leader who can oversee the Mediterranean island’s economic recovery nearly six years after the country came close to financial collapse, Bloomberg News reported. Incumbent President Nicos Anastasiades, 71, will face Stavros Malas in the runoff after taking 35.5 percent of the vote compared with 30.3 percent for Malas, an independent candidate backed by the leftist Akel party, according to Cypriot Interior Ministry figures. The two men also squared off in the 2013 presidential election that saw Anastasiades elected for a five-year term. Centrist Diko party leader Nikolas Papadopoulos was knocked out of the race after placing third with 25.7 percent. Just under 72 percent of registered voters cast a ballot compared with just over 83 percent in the 2013 election. “A re-election of Anastasiades will mean continuity in current economic policy and we know what to expect from him, ” said Sofronis Clerides, professor of economics at the University of Cyprus. Read more.
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