The main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)'s Chairman, Economic Minister Fayyaz Ismail, has admitted to inaccuracies in his prior predictions and calculations for the presidential election and acknowledged the government's underperformance in the first round of the presidential election.
At President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's final and largest campaign rally held in Male' City on September 1, Fayyaz confidently proclaimed that President Solih would secure re-election for a second term in a single round, with an impressive 56 percent of the vote. During the rally, Fayyaz urged The Democrats, a breakaway faction of the MDP, to cast their votes for President Solih, emphasizing the importance of maintaining the peace and security established by the current government and preventing a return to past injustices. Fayyaz suggested that with their support, President Solih could even achieve 60 percent of the vote.
However, in yesterday's election, rival PPM-PNC candidate Dr. Mohamed Muizzu emerged as the leading contender, securing 46.19 percent, while President Solih trailed behind with 39.04 percent. Dr. Muizzu received 100,342 votes, while President Solih received 84,805 votes.
In a tweet posted after the election, Fayyaz said his earlier calculations were inaccurate and that the party has been able to identify what needs to be done to rectify their approach for the second round. He expressed the party's determination to succeed in the second round and said it would do whatever it takes to prevent the Maldives from reverting to past injustices.
President Solih has also acknowledged the need for the MDP to form alliances with other parties to secure victory in the second round. He cited unforeseen factors at play in the first round and emphasized the importance of accounting for these elements in their strategy for the upcoming round.
