Elections Commission (EC) on Friday accepted President Abdulla Yameen’s candidacy for September’s presidential election.

President Yameen’s bid for a second term was submitted at a ceremony on Thursday by Moosa Zameer, tourism minister and the ruling party’s vice president.

Neither President Yameen nor his running mate Mohamed Shaheem joined the ceremony. Moosa Zamir told the press that President Yameen was unable to join as he is away on an official trip.

After EC’s approval, President Yameen is set to run against opposition coalition candidate Ibrahim Mohamed Solih in the election.

While seven people had taken the candidacy application, only three had submitted their bids including Hussain Naseer, who’s candidacy was rejected due to discrepancies in the information he had provided.

Former home minister Umar Naseer and former vice president of Local Government Authority Shujau Usman have announced their decision not to run.