EC to forgo polling station in Hulhumale’ despite MDP’s appeal

Elections Commission (EC), on Thursday, confirmed that no ballot boxes will be placed in Hulhumalé for the upcoming North Hithadhoo constituency parliamentary by-election, scheduled for June 6^th.

The decision follows concerns raised by the main opposition party, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), after the EC had not included Hulhumalé among locations for polling stations.

In a letter addressed to EC, MDP noted that the list of polling station locations published recently does not include any sites in Hulhumalé Phase I or Phase II. The party emphasized that a substantial number of individuals from the constituency reside in Hulhumalé, and that the decision would therefore impose significant inconvenience on voters.

The party further highlighted that, according to statistics from the Local Council Elections held last April, approximately 300 individuals registered under the North Hithadhoo constituency had re-registered to vote in Hulhumalé.

“Requiring these 300 individuals to re-register again would be a significant burden,” the party stressed.

Commenting on the matter, EC clarified that, under its current by-election regulations, voting will only be conducted at the primary designated center in Malé and at the main centers located within the relevant island or city constituency. The Commission confirmed that no additional ballot boxes would be placed outside these specified locations.

However, the Commission assured voters that individuals previously registered to vote in the Malé area would not be required to register again.

"Under the policies established by the Elections Commission for upcoming by-elections, ballot boxes will only be located at the primary center in Malé and the designated centers within the respective island or city; no other locations will be utilized," the EC stated.

EC further explained that voters currently registered in Malé have already been included in the voter lists assigned to ballot boxes within the capital. Meanwhile, voters who cast their ballots outside the Malé area in previous elections will automatically be listed under the default ballot boxes designated for the constituency in Addu City.

The by-election was triggered after the Supreme Court ruled on April 12^th which saw ruling People National Congress (PNC)'s Mohamed Sinan, who previously held the seat, become unseated. The ruling followed a case filed by Ghalib Saleem, citing Sinan’s failure to settle a MVR 3.8 million debt in accordance with a judgment issued by the Addu Hithadhoo Magistrate Court. All five justices presiding over the case unanimously determined that Sinan had been unseated due to proven unsettled debt.

Elections Commission has officially scheduled the by-election for North Hithadhoo parliamentary seat for June 6, from 8:00am to 16:00pm, with official results expected to be declared on June 8.

The by-election will be contested by Ahmed Saeed (Soda), the current councilor for the Hithadhoo Moolekede district, as ruling PNC’s candidate, and former Addu City Mayor Abdulla Sodiq (Sobe), as opposition MDP’s candidate.