Primaries of the opposition, Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), is scheduled to be held on February 7th.

During a press conference on Sunday regarding the party's preparations for the upcoming local council elections, former MP for Madaveli constituency Mohamed Muaz stated that if the primaries require a second round, it will be held on February 9th.

Muaz further stated only members who joined the party before January 24th are eligible to vote in the primaries. Additionally, he stated that the deadline for members to submit complaints regarding the primaries ends on January 22nd, and that the final list of candidates will be publicised on January 26th.

Speaking at the press conference, PPM's secretary-general Heena Waleed stated that ballot boxes for the primaries will be placed in several other islands, aside from the capital city as well.

While highlighting that the party's membership has increased, PPm revealed that the party received over 700 applications from interested candidates.

As such, statistics released by the Elections Commission of Maldives (EC) on January 5th revealed that the membership of the opposition fell significantly between September - December 2019. Some members of PPM's leadership are allegedly registered in other parties as well.

According to Muaz, the party is working together with EC to identify the root cause behind the loss of members.

The Local Council Elections is slated for April 4th.