Somalia election timetable deepens political divisions

Somalia vote.

A Somali citizen votes at a polling station in 2016. The country will hold presidential elections on May 15, after a delay of one year. 

Photo credit: File | AFP

Somalia’s new electoral timetable has deepened political divisions, with opposition leaders accusing President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s administration of pursuing a unilateral process designed to favour the incumbent.

The dispute escalated on Thursday after the National Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (NIEBC) announced that elections for the Lower House, or House of the People, and the Upper House, or Senate, would be held on April 15, 2027.