Former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed has announced his decision not to seek re-election for his current parliamentary seat.
Nasheed’s declining political influence and a string of defeats led to speculation that he might lose his parliamentary seat. His decision follows a series of setbacks in his political career, including losing the backing of his former party, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), at the party’s presidential primaries.
Subsequently, Nasheed parted ways with his longtime political supporters and formed a new party, The Democrats. Critics argue that Nasheed fielded a proxy candidate to gauge his political support in the September presidential elections, with The Democrats receiving a similar number of votes to what Nasheed had garnered in the party primaries.
The split from the MDP also resulted in multiple no-confidence motions against Nasheed in his role as Parliament Speaker, a position he had secured with the backing of his former party’s supermajority in Parliament. The political rift caused parliamentary work to stall for nearly a year.
In the face of ongoing disputes, Nasheed eventually resigned from his position as Speaker, just before the long-awaited and contentious impeachment proceedings were set to commence.
Nasheed, once a highly popular politician, earned widespread admiration for his unwavering commitment to upholding democratic values in the country. His political journey was marked by multiple jail terms and convictions on politically motivated charges.
Nasheed’s decision not to seek re-election was communicated through a WhatsApp message to fellow parliamentarians on Wednesday. While Nasheed will not be contesting next year’s elections, his party, The Democrats, has expressed its intention to field candidates in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
