Somalia election explained 2026.

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s planned 2026 national elections have become the focus of a widening political dispute after parliament approved constitutional changes that leaders and opponents say would reshape how the country chooses its leaders and when the next vote is held.

On March 5, 2026, Somalia’s parliament voted to amend the constitution and extend the terms of lawmakers and the president to five years from four, according to President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and the parliamentary speaker in statements reported by Reuters. Reuters reported the move would push back planned elections by a year.

Opposition party leaders, including former presidents and former prime ministers, rejected the amendment and called for elections to go ahead in May as previously planned, Reuters reported.

How Somalia has chosen leaders in recent elections

Somalia has long relied on an indirect election model in which clan elders and delegates help determine seats in parliament, and lawmakers then elect the president. That approach has been used in recent national election cycles, amid persistent insecurity and political disputes.

For years, Somali leaders have said they want to return to direct voting, but implementation has repeatedly been delayed by security challenges and disagreements between the federal government, opposition figures and some federal member states.

The push for “one person, one vote”

Somali authorities have said they aim to replace the clan-based model with universal suffrage, often described as “one person, one vote,” beginning with local polls and expanding nationwide.

In April 2025, a national voter registration campaign was launched in Mogadishu ahead of contentious local elections, according to an Axadle report citing agencies. The report said Somalia’s cabinet had approved bills intended to transition the country to one-person, one-vote presidential elections scheduled for 2026, while opposition leaders rejected the plan as unilateral.

A major test of direct voting came in the capital on Dec. 25, 2025, when residents were set to vote in a local election across Mogadishu’s 16 districts, the Associated Press reported. AP described it as the first major one-person, one-vote poll in the capital since 1969 and said it was organized by the federal government but rejected by opposition parties, which called the process flawed and one-sided.

AP reported the Mogadishu vote was to be overseen by Somalia’s National Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, with as many as 20 political parties fielding candidates, and that the local elections had been postponed three times that year.

Constitutional changes and rising tensions

The election debate has been closely tied to Somalia’s long-running constitutional review, which has exposed divisions over governance and power-sharing between the federal government and regional states.

On Jan. 28, 2026, scuffles and shouting broke out in Somalia’s parliament during a joint session after the speaker attempted to advance proposed constitutional amendments that opposition lawmakers said would extend parliament’s mandate, forcing the session’s suspension, AP reported. AP also noted that a similar attempt to extend political mandates under a previous administration contributed to a constitutional crisis in 2021 and led to armed confrontations in Mogadishu.

Following the March 5, 2026 vote, Axadle reported, citing AFP, that amendments were passed despite a boycott by an opposition alliance and that the changes extended the president’s mandate by one year, raising questions about whether elections would proceed on the earlier timeline.

Why 2026 matters

Somalia’s leaders and political rivals have treated 2026 as a pivotal year because it has been linked to the end of current mandates and to the government’s effort to move toward direct elections nationwide.

Supporters of the shift to universal suffrage have argued it would move Somalia away from clan-based bargaining and toward broader voter participation. Critics have warned that changes made without consensus could deepen political rifts, especially as the country continues to battle the al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab insurgency and grapple with logistical limits that complicate nationwide voting.

With constitutional changes now contested and the election model still disputed, Somalia’s path to a 2026 vote — and whether that vote is direct, indirect, or delayed — remains uncertain.

Ali Musa
Axadle International Monitoring – Somalia