Maldivians breathed a sigh of relief in November, following the much-anticipated appointment of a new, democratically elected President.
The Maldives government hit turbulent waters in early 2012 following the forced resignation of President Mohamed Nasheed. Nasheed – the first President to be elected by popular vote – was alleged to have been forced to resign ‘at gunpoint’ in a coup d’état that he believed was planned by Vice President Mohammed Waheed Hassan. Hassan stood in as President of the Maldives following Nasheed’s resignation.
When presidential elections were planned for early September 2013, the media followed the story closely. In the first round of elections, Nasheed won 45 per cent of the vote. The elections were due to go to a second round in the same month, but the Maldives Supreme Court postponed the second round after Republican candidate Qasim Ibrahim made an allegation that electoral fraud had taken place. The results of the first round were later annulled.
The following months saw tension rise further as workers in the tourism industry threatened to strike en masse if the second round of presidential elections was not held as planned. The country’s Supreme Court ruled that the second round would be postponed until such time as irregularities in the first round had been fully investigated. Many critics claimed that the Supreme Court ruled with political bias, as many judges remain tied to the old authoritarian regime.
A second attempt at elections, due to take place in October, fell through, with a first round finally taking place on 9 November and a possible run-off election scheduled for 16 November. The first round of elections went ahead surprisingly smoothly, with Nasheed securing 46 per cent of the vote and Abdulla Yameen coming second place with 29 per cent.
Unfortunately this was not the end of political disarray for the Maldives as the country was propelled into what was deemed a ‘constitutional crisis’, spurred on by incumbent President Hassan’s refusal to stand down when his term officially ended. A Supreme Court ruling decreed that Hassan could stay in office until the elections were concluded, but many citizens believed that the court’s delays were for the benefit of the second-place candidate, the half-brother of former dictator Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
Despite widespread fears that the second round of elections would fail to go ahead as planned, the polling stations opened as scheduled on 16 November for what promised to be an election that would finally calm the Maldives’ stormy waters. Voters turned out in record numbers to elect Yameen – in a surprise victory – who was sworn in the same day after securing 51 per cent of the vote.
