Former president Mohamed Nasheed faces election run-off in Maldives

The former leader of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, faces a tricky run-off after failing to win a majority in presidential polls he hoped would seal his return to power 18 months after he was toppled.

Nasheed was the clear winner of Saturday's first round but analysts said he would be disappointed in failing to pass the 50 per cent threshold and would now face an uphill task to seal his comeback in the second round of voting on September 28.

The Elections Commission yesterday formally announced the run-off between Nasheed, who secured 45.45 per cent of the popular vote on the Indian Ocean islands, and his nearest rival Abdullah Yameen, who garnered 25.35 per cent.

The two other candidates, both of whom have been fiercely critical of Nasheed, could now prove a major stumbling block to the climate change activist's hopes of storming back to power after being ousted in February last year.

Nasheed has maintained he was the victim of a "coup" after a mutiny by the security forces but Saturday's vote passed off without violence.

Nasheed's Maldivian Democratic Party said it "preferred" an outright victory on Saturday, but was prepared to face the next round of balloting even as parties scrambled to form new coalitions. "Of course we preferred a victory in the first round, but we are very confident of winning the next round," MDP Youth Wing leader Shauna Aminath said. "The results show that we doubled our vote base compared to 2008 and we are the largest, strongest party in the country."