MDP will not pursue elections complaints at court

Main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has announced that they will not be pursuing any complaints related to this year's Local Council and Women's Development Committee Elections at court.

MDP had earlier requested that the Elections Commission re-count votes in six ballot boxes across Male' City, as in some cases, the number of invalid votes counted had been greater than the difference of votes between the leading candidates. MDP had then stated that they would be taking some elections complaints to court as well.

However, the MDP national council meeting held to decide whether or not to pursue legal action over the election had concluded with MDP announcing that they would not be taking any elections complaints to court. President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih was present at the meeting, alongside former president and Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed.

MDP had submitted complaints to the elections commission for the T03 (Central-Henveiru constituency), T04 (South-Henveiru constituency), T05 (West-Henveiru constituency), T10 (North-Machchangoalhi constituency), T14 (North-Maafannu constituency) and the T16 (West-Maafannu constituency) ballot boxes.

In addition to these complaints, MDP noted that in the number of invalid votes counted had been greater than the difference of votes between the leading candidates in their overview of the elections. The vote, which had been conducted on 10 April amid the global Covid-19 pandemic, had seen MDP lose super-majority across local council and committee seats for the first time as the island nation prepares to lean fully into decentralized governance in the coming months.