Voters head to the polls today for Liberia 's first presidential elections since the end of the west African nation's civil war.
Presidential candidate George Weah stand next to fellow candidate Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Twenty-two candidates are vying for the top job in Liberia, in tatters after 14 years of nearly continuous civil war that ended with a peace deal in August 2003. A transitional government has arranged the vote, and 15,000 UN peacekeepers are keeping the calm.
Violence from Liberia's brutal civil conflict spilled across borders and convulsed large swathes of the region, leaving hundreds of thousands dead and millions homeless.
Candidates are promising to keep the peace, while rebuilding government-run water and electricity plants and creating jobs in a country where less than a quarter of the population is employed.
Although no polling data exist, many believe the front-runner is former international soccer star George Weah (40), whose rise from a Monrovia slum to soccer stardom has captivated much of Liberia's youth - including many among the 100,000 demobilised fighters who raped, pillaged and murdered during the civil war.
But Weah's critics say he has neither the education nor the management experience to govern Liberia's three million people.
Also drawing large crowds at rallies is Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, a Harvard-educated, 66-year old veteran of Liberia's politics. Ms Johnson-Sirleaf is hailed by many as an astute administrator, but her detractors say she's part of a political class that has only led to Liberia's demise.
Also running are two former warlords and a host of other local businessmen and lawyers.
AP