Overseas voter re-registrations nearly doubled, when compared to the first round, for Saturday’s second round of the presidential election, the Elections Commission (EC) has said. EC Vice-President Ismail Habeeb said 6,223 had re-registered to vote at overseas polling stations.
In the first round held on 9 September, the number registered to vote at overseas locations stood at 3,327, with 14 ballot boxes placed across India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, the United Kingdom (UK) and the United Arab Emirate (UAE).
With 282,395 eligible to vote in the first round, the second round saw 408 more eligible voters added to the official electoral roll. Twelve more ballot boxes will be added in the second round due to increased re-registrations, the elections body had stated earlier.
Malé Mayor Mohamed Muizzu, the Progressive Party of the Maldives endorsed People’s National Congress (PPM/PNC) candidate, and incumbent President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) candidate, having garnered the most votes in the first round with 46 percent and 39 percent respectively, will compete for the nation’s top job in the second round runoff of the presidential elections on 30 September.