Voting has begun in the much anticipated Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)’s presidential primary election ahead of the September 2023 presidential election.
President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed are contesting in the MDP primary election. Speaker Nasheed is candidate number one on the ballot, and President Solih is candidate number two. It is the first time a sitting president is contesting in a party primary in the Maldives.
President Solih and Speaker Nasheed have cast their ballot in the MDP primary. The president voted in the Lhaviyani atoll Hinnavaru ballot box placed in Iskandhar School and the speaker voted in the Galolhu-North ballot box placed in Jamaluddin School.
The polling stations are open from 0900hrs to 1700hrs. A total of 243 ballot boxes are placed for the voting. As per the party's voters list, 57,257 people are eligible to vote in the election. This is the most exciting internal election held by a political party.