Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) are the only parties contesting the Thinadhoo Council president by-election, the Elections Commission (EC) has announced.
The by-election follows the Local Government Authority’s (LGA) decision to declare the seat held by former council President Shujau Ali vacant.
The LGA declared the seat vacant on 19 July and applications to contest the election were open until 26 October.
The EC announced the candidates today.
Candidates contesting for Thinadhoo Council president:
- Candidate No. 1: Shujau Ali, Vaavu Thinadhoo Dhilbahaaruge (MDP)
- Candidate No. 2: Ahmed Aman Mohamed, Vaavu Thinadhoo Nayaa (PNC).
Shujau, who is contesting on the MDP ticket, was elected council President in the previous local council elections as a candidate of The Democrats before later joining the MDP.
His seat was declared vacant after the LGA determined that he had lost his position by joining another political party during his elected term.
The LGA board decided on 30 June to remove Shujau and notify the EC that the seat was vacant. He had been suspended since June, with the council’s Vice President managing its affairs.
The PNC candidate, Ahmed Aman Mohamed, was elected to the Thinadhoo Council as an independent candidate in the 2021 local council elections.
The by-election will be held on 28 November. Elections for the Thinadhoo Women’s Development Committee will take place on the same day.
The EC said independent candidate Zeena Ahmed and MDP candidate Risfa Naseem are contesting the Women’s Development Committee election.
