Elections Commission of the Maldives (ECM) has revealed Ahmed Abdul Hakeem has retained his seat as the council president of Kondey, Gaafu Alifu Atoll, after a recount of the ballots.
High Court ordered the recount on May 23 after a complaint was filed by Shuaib Mohamed Didi, who had run for Kondey's council presidency in the local council elections held on April 10. His complaint is in regards to the handling of identifying and separating the invalid votes from the rest of the ballots by ECM officials. After the complaint was filed, High Court ordered the Local Government Authority (LGA) to postpone the oath-taking of Kondey's council president-elect. There was enough evidence to require a recount of the three ballot boxes placed in Kondey in the elections, said High Court.
Three candidates had run for Kondey's council presidency in the elections. The official elections results, published by the ECM, showed that ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) candidate Ahmed Abdul Hakeem had won the seat with 130 votes, with independent candidate Shuaib coming in second with 128 votes. ECM declared Ahmed Abdul Hakeem remains the council president-elect after the recount.
A total of seven elections-related complaints were filed at the High Court, out of which five have been dismissed. The court is currently looking into the complaint regarding the election of the council president of Maabaidhoo, Laamu Atoll.