Elections Commission is getting ready to hold the Local Council Election on March 6, 2021.

Speaking at the "Falasurukhee" program of Raajje TV, President of Elections Commission, Ahmed Shareef stated that even though the commission is making arrangements to hold the Local Council Election on March 6, next year, they will not be officially announcing the election date before the government announces that state of public health emergency have been lifted.

According to the new Sunset Bill, the Election Commission cannot announce the election date before the state of public health emergency have been lifted.

Shareef stated that an election is not something that can be held suddenly, so even though they have not announced an official date, they preparing for it before hand, and it is possible for the date to change.

Highlighting that the Local Council Election falls on Ramadan, according to the new law, Shareef said that the commission is trying to hold the election before Ramadan. He also emphasized that it would be difficult to hold both the election and election campaigns during Ramadan.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih ratified the special bill to delay the Local Council Elections and the Women’s Development Committee Elections, indefinitely on May 10, 2020.

The bill sought to delay the elections and allocate policies in regard to the elections, at a time the wide-spreading Covid-19 pandemic has provoked a State of National Health Emergency across the entire Maldives under the Public Health Act of the Maldives and immediate precautionary measures were called for.

According to the bill, the Local Council and WDC elections, which were originally scheduled to be held in April this year, will take place one year after the bill’s ratification.

Although the motion states that the latest date on which the elections may be held is January 6, 2021, the committee has amended the elections act mandating the Local Council Elections and Women’s Development Committee Elections to be held within a year after the amendments are implemented.

People’s Majlis passed the special motion, the Sunset Bill regarding the Local Council Elections, on April 29, this year.