Malawians are waiting to find out who their next president will be as polls have closed in most parts of the country and counting has started.
Thousands of people queued outside polling stations on Tuesday to vote for a president, MPs and local councillors, keenly hoping to effect change in a country swamped by economic troubles. Some are still voting in areas where polling started late.
In his campaign for a second term, current President Lazarus Chakwera pledged to fix Malawi's economy - as did his main rival, octogenarian former leader Peter Mutharika.
If no candidate wins more than half the votes, the top two contenders will head to a run-off.
There is anger in us. I want to change this government. I want young people to be in good jobs, Ettah Nyasulu, a 28-year-old waitress told AFP press agency before heading out to vote.
Malawi has long been one of the poorest countries in the world, but recent times have been especially punishing. Food costs have been rising at more than 30% in the last year and wages have not kept pace.
The high inflation rate has partly been put down to a shortage of foreign currency - known as forex - in the banks.
President Chakwera, who has promised to tackle this shortage, cast his vote in line with local residents at his home village of Malembo, about 56 km (35 miles) from the capital Lilongwe.
Several police officers and military guards watched over the 70-year-old and his wife as voters huddled around, hoping to catch a glimpse of their president.
The election appears to be a two-horse race between Chakwera and Mutharika, although there are 15 other candidates.
The Malawi Electoral Commission chairperson, Annabel Mtalimanja, noted that 3.7 million people - just half of those registered - had cast their ballots as of a couple of hours before polls closed.
Counting of votes began immediately after the polls closed at 14:00 GMT, with results expected by the end of September 24 for the presidential election and September 30 for parliamentary elections.
