Polling appears to have passed peacefully with international observers spotting a few minor incidents.

It will be several days before results emerge from the third Presidential election Somaliland has had since it broke away from Somalia 26 years ago.

Counted ballots are sent to regional offices and then passed to the electoral commission who will make the announcement.

President Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud is standing down.

Three candidates Muse Bihi Abdi, from the ruling Kulmiye Party, Faisal Ali Warabe and Abdirahman Abdullahi are vying to replace him.

The exemplary democratic record of the country at the top of the Horn of Africa has not earned it the continental and international recognition it seeks.

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