President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has declared April 7, Sunday, a public holiday.
The President’s Spokesperson has confirmed this on Twitter.
On account of Majlis elections, President @ibusolih has declared Sunday 7 April 2019 a government holiday.
— Ibrahim Hood (@MvSpokesperson) April 6, 2019
Speaking at a polling station, President Solih urged every citizen to exercise their rights and come out to vote.
Elections Commission (EC) has extended the voting time to 6pm, citing the hot afternoon weather as causing a decrease in voter turnout.
With this change, the polling station in the United Kingdom will close at 11:30pm, Maldives time.
Polling stations opened at 8am in Maldives. Out of the 264,442 eligible voters, 160,534 have voted so far, which is over 60%.
