MVR 120 million budget requested for Presidential Elections

The Election Commission (EC) has sent a request to the Ministry of Finance and Treasury for an estimated MVR 120 million for the upcoming Presidential Elections.

The Secretary General of the commission Hassan Zakariyya revealed to Sun that an estimated MVR 95 million will be spent on the first round of voting, while MVR 25 million on the second round.

He stated that a request was sent to the Finance Ministry on Thursday to accommodate this budget.

In the elections held in Maldives, the biggest expenditure is for keeping ballot boxes on all the islands and printing ballot papers.

Presidential Elections are held in Maldives once every five years, and the next one is slated for 2023.

Currently, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has expressed interest in candidacy, and Maldives Democratic Party (MDP) has decided to hold a primary soon.

Meanwhile, the opposition coalition Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and People National Congress (PNC) have granted their presidential ticket to former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom.

Additionally, leader of Maldives National Party (MNP) Mohamed Nazim and Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) Ahmed Siyam Mohamed have also expressed interest in contesting the Presidential Elections.