Greeks vote on future of Cyprus

Annan’s plan would create a single state consisting of separate Greek and Turkish Cypriot "component states" linked through a weak central government.
Alvaro de Soto, Annan’s special envoy for Cyprus, returned to Cyprus late Friday after talks in New York with the UN leader.
If the reunification plan is not accepted, de Soto said "the opportunity disappears" and only Greeks on Cyprus will be in a position to sign a European Union accession agreement.
Ten candidates are running in the election, but the duel is between Glafcos Clerides, the 83-year-old right-wing incumbent, and Tassos Papadopoulos, 69, a centrist backed by other opposition leftist parties.
Clerides decided to run for a third term, but limited to 16 months instead of a full five-years, saying he is best qualified to continue the delicate reunification negotiations. The opposition accuses him of being too old and willing to yield on basic issues of principle.
Greek Cypriots are deeply split over the plan.
Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash, who is backed by Ankara, opposes the Annan plan because it rejects his demand for recognition of his state as a prelude to reunification as a two-state confederation.
Polls give Papadopoulos between 45 and 48 per cent, compared to between 34 and 38 per cent for Clerides. Both would be short of the 50 percent result needed for victory in Sunday’s first round, making a second round between the two leading candidates likely.