Mogadishu (AX) — In a fresh signal that Somalia’s long-running election dispute may be inching toward compromise, the Somali Future Council, an opposition coalition sharply critical of the Federal Government of Somalia, has reportedly presented a new electoral proposal to international partners after meeting with representatives of the European Union, United Nations, United States and United Kingdom.
The discussions centered on how to break the country’s political deadlock and settle on a workable election framework.
According to sources familiar with the proposal, the Somali Future Council agreed for the first time that Somalia should move toward direct elections in which voters choose members of Parliament.
Under the plan, elections would be held in four districts in each federal member state, with the process overseen jointly by a federal election committee and a committee from the state where the vote is taking place.
At the same time, the opposition coalition said the federal government’s political party system should not be part of the exercise.
Instead, it proposed that voting be conducted under the 4.5 power-sharing formula, while preserving the current clan-based allocation of parliamentary seats. In that arrangement, local voters would directly elect the representatives for those seats.
The Somali Future Council also called for a one-day vote using paper ballots, rejecting an electronic voting system.
The coalition said elections in Hirshabelle and Galmudug should take place within three months, and that the federal election should be finished within six months.
Representatives of the EU, U.N., U.S. and U.K. are expected to react to the proposal after consulting with the Federal Government of Somalia.
The plan points to possible movement by the government and opposition toward direct elections, but major divisions remain over the voting model, the role of political parties, seat allocation and who should run the process.
The federal government has been advocating for a one-person, one-vote system built around political parties, while opposition groups say the administration is trying to steer the process without broad enough agreement.
