The ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) won yesterday’s by-elections for a Faafu Bilendhoo atoll council seat and Alif Alif Himandhoo island council seat while the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) won the mid-Fuvahmulah atoll council seat.
Provisional results announced by the Elections Commission (EC) reflect party strength and margin of victory for the ruling party and opposition in the February 2011 local council elections.
In the island of Himandhoo in Alif Alif atoll – where the MDP won four out of five island council seats in February – MDP candidate Shimal Ibrahim won with 195 votes (63 percent) against independent candidate Afrah Adil who received 116 votes (37 percent).
For the vacant Bilendhoo constituency atoll council seat, MDP candidate Ibrahim Naeem came out on top with 674 votes (53 percent) against Jumhooree Party contender Mohamed Musthafa, placed second with 539 votes (42 percent).
In the February elections, the ruling party won all three atoll council seats from the Bilendhoo constituency.
Meanwhile in the mid-Fuvahmulah constituency, Abdulla Mohamed Didi – who ran as an Independent as PPM had not completed the registration process – won with 861 votes (52 percent) to the 750 votes (46 percent) for the MDP candidate, Mohamed Abdulla Didi.
Notably, the candidate fielded by the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP), Mohamed Ali, received only 19 votes.
In February, the two atoll council seats from the mid-Fuvahmulah constituency was won by DRP candidate Ali Faraz with 860 votes and MDP candidate Hassan Saeed with 836 votes. Yesterday’s winner, Abdulla Mohamed, contested on a DRP ticket and was placed third with 785 votes.
In May 2009, the parliament seat of the mid-Fuvahmulah constituency was won by MDP MP Shifaq Mufeed with 754 votes.
The winner of the MDP primary for the mid-Fuvahmulah Atoll council seat was meanwhile not on the ballot after failing to submit an ID card original by the October 16 deadline.
(0)Dislikes
(0)