The Maldives’ President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has been declared the winner of a contentious presidential primary, but his rival has yet to concede the election amid allegations of voter fraud, heightening political uncertainty in the popular Indian Ocean tourist destination.
The governing Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) said on Sunday that Solih won 61 percent of the vote while his opponent Mohamed Nasheed garnered 38 percent. The election – held on Saturday – was tense with at least five people arrested for disrupting voting and brawls breaking out between rival factions at several polling stations.
The outcome was a blow for Nasheed, who served as president from 2008 to 2012 and was the Maldives’ first democratically elected leader. The 55-year-old had been hoping for a comeback after a “terrorism” conviction that was widely seen as politically motivated prevented him from running in the last presidential election.
Solih, who had won the 2018 vote after contesting in Nasheed’s stead, appealed for unity.
Speaking to a crowd of cheering supporters in the capital, Male’, the 60-year-old said, “our rivalry is now over”.
“Now is the time to unite and work together to win the upcoming presidential election for the MDP,” he said.
