Somalia to hold parliamentary and presidential elections in 2027 — Al Jazeera
Somalia's election commission has announced that parliamentary elections will be held on April 15, 2027, and presidential elections on May 15. Al Jazeera reported this.
Abdikarim Ahmed Hassan, chair of the Independent National Electoral and Boundaries Commission, said on state television that the vote would concern members of the lower and upper houses of parliament. The electoral body explained the date of the presidential election by a provision under which the head of state's five-year term begins on the day they take the oath of office.
Disputes over the electoral process
The second presidential term of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, which began in 2022, ended earlier this year. At the same time, in May his government introduced a transitional period through a constitutional amendment, despite an agreement with the opposition to hold elections. Opposition parties boycotted the vote on constitutional amendments and have rejected those amendments ever since.
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Mohamud is promoting elections under a party system, which he wants to use to replace the mechanism of election through recognized clan elders. Critics call this course an attempt to seize power.
Reaction of the opposition and authorities
Former President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo called the decision on the elections “a dangerous threat to Somalia's statehood and future” and urged an agreement among all parties before a decision on the vote is made. Another former president, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, warned, according to AFP, that the disputed electoral process could lead to parallel elections and even civil conflict.
The government, for its part, called the announcement of the voting dates an important stage in strengthening the country's democratic system and urged all sides to join the process peacefully and in good faith. Analyst Samira Gaid told AFP that there is no political consensus on holding these elections and that government processes are deepening the country's fragmentation.
