Former president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and former president Mohamed Nasheed announced on Wednesday that they have decided to work together, marking their first joint move since a bitter political fallout ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
The two leaders spoke to reporters after meeting at the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) office in Malé. Both said their immediate focus is the upcoming local council elections, with broader discussions, including the presidential race, set for later.
Solih said political differences had not reached a point where cooperation was impossible, adding that dialogue had remained open despite tensions during the last election cycle.
Nasheed said the MDP did not suffer a major organisational setback during the period he was outside the party, citing its strong internal structure.
Solih and Nasheed have known each other since childhood and worked closely for decades in politics. Their relationship broke down during the 2023 presidential race, after Nasheed left the MDP following his defeat in the party’s primary. His departure and the subsequent split were widely viewed as a key factor in Solih’s failure to secure re-election.
Wednesday’s meeting was the first public engagement between the two since that fallout.
Nasheed formally rejoined the MDP about six months ago at a rally held at Sultan Park, nearly two years after resigning from the party he co-founded. Several senior figures who had left with him to form the breakaway The Democrats also returned to the MDP at the event.
Most of the MDP leadership attended the rally, though Solih was absent at the event.
At the rally, Nasheed warned of a growing debt crisis and criticised the Muizzu government’s economic capacity. He said the MDP had the experience required to manage state finances and restructure debt, and predicted a heavy defeat for the government in the next local council elections.
Nasheed resigned from the MDP in June 2023 after publicly falling out with Solih. He launched The Democrats the following month with close allies, many of whom have since rejoined the MDP after the party passed a resolution allowing their return.
Nasheed currently serves as secretary-general of the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) and remains active in domestic politics.