Home Minister Imran elected as Adhaalath pres.

Minister of Home Affairs and current President of Adhaalath Party Sheikh Imran Abdulla has won the vote conducted to elect the party's president, securing a win over Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr. Ahmed Zahir Ali.

The results of Adhaalath's election was announced on Saturday night. Imran retained his position as president with 921 votes, while Islamic Minister Dr. Zahir, who contested against Imran, won just 167 votes in the election.

More than 4,500 people were registered to vote in Adhaalath's interanl elections, but only 1,088 votes were cast. According to the party, the voter turn-out for the elections was 89.2 percent of all registered voters.

Minister Imran's running mate Ahmed Shareef is now Vice-President of Adhaalath Party following their win in the party's internal elections. Ahmed Nasheed contested on the same ticket as Minister Dr. Zahir.

Adhaalath is member of the ruling coalition, and Imran is among the four coalition leaders.

While Imran won the vote and will retain his title of Adhaalath president, he had said at the inauguration of his campaign that he had never expected to see the day he would need to contest against someone and host a campaign for the position of party president.

He went on to say that such a day had come despite his belief otherwise, and that it was because changes in the Maldivian political climate were influencing Adhaalath Party as well. He added that some had attempted to create divisions among members of Adhaalath, and that this was the reason that elections for the post of president had to been conducted.

The party recently brought changes to its procedures, which allows women to compete for the top positions in the party.

Adhaalath Party's presidential elections were held online as a safety measure in light of on-going risks presented by the Covid-19 pandemic.