Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s electoral dispute intensified Thursday after former President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo dismissed the newly issued timetable for the 2027 parliamentary and presidential elections, warning that a vote held without a wider political settlement could fracture the country and lead to rival electoral processes.
Farmaajo, who is seeking office under the Nabad iyo Nolol party, accused the government of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of moving ahead unilaterally. He urged the administration to resume talks with opposition leaders and the federal member states before proceeding with the election plan.
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“The unilateral electoral process adopted by former President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, whose term in office expired in May this year, poses a serious threat to Somalia’s statehood and future,” Farmaajo said in a statement.
He cautioned that the approach “risks paving the way for competing electoral processes and the outbreak of civil conflict across the country.”
Farmaajo issued the statement hours after Somalia’s National Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (NIEBC) announced dates for elections to both chambers of the federal parliament. Those elections are scheduled for April 15, 2027, with the presidential vote set for May 15.
Under the commission’s calendar, political party and voter registration will reopen from Nov. 1-22, while political parties must submit candidate lists by Nov. 22. The provisional voter register is scheduled for publication on Jan. 21, campaigning will start Feb. 27 and the final voter list will be released March 15.
The NIEBC said it established the timetable in accordance with the federal Constitution and national electoral law, which empower the commission to determine election dates.
Farmaajo disputed that authority as applied to the current process, saying Somalia’s political future should not be settled through “unilateral decisions or personal ambitions.”
He called on the country’s political leaders to keep negotiating and reach agreement on an electoral framework that includes all major stakeholders.
“The outgoing President’s plan to hold elections without a political consensus, and without the participation or agreement of the Federal Member States and the country’s political opposition, reflects his misguided authoritarian approach and disregard for the constitution,” Farmaajo said.
Farmaajo’s description of Mohamud as an “outgoing” or former president reflects the opposition’s position that Mohamud’s four-year mandate ended in May 2026.
The federal government rejects that view. It maintains that constitutional amendments extending the terms of the president and parliament from four to five years permit Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to remain in office until May 2027. The NIEBC’s decision to hold the presidential election on May 15, 2027, is consistent with that interpretation.
The disagreement over the mandate forms part of a broader political confrontation involving constitutional amendments, the shift toward direct elections and the authority of federal member states over the design of the electoral system.
Puntland State, Jubaland and several opposition groups have rejected major elements of the amended constitutional framework. They have demanded a negotiated political agreement before federal elections move forward, while opposition leaders have questioned whether the electoral commission has the political consensus needed to oversee the process.
Farmaajo urged former national leaders, presidents of the federal member states and other political figures to coordinate around what he called a transparent and inclusive electoral process.
He also asked international partners to maintain their mediation efforts and help resolve the standoff.
“We further call on our international partners to play a meaningful and constructive role in resolving the electoral disputes by continuing their mediation efforts,” the statement said.
Negotiations between the federal government and opposition figures, including talks backed by international partners, have so far failed to produce an electoral agreement accepted by all sides.
