Suha Ibrahim, the candidate representing the ruling PNC, has won the re-election for the Dh. Meedhoo council president position, which was held following a disputed outcome in the April local council elections. Alongside Suha, Mohamed Shahid from the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) also contested for the council presidency.

A total of 1,049 voters were eligible to participate in the re-vote. According to preliminary results, Suha emerged victorious by a clear margin. All three ballot boxes used for the re-election were won by Suha.

Out of 985 ballots cast, Suha received 529 votes, while Shahid garnered 449 votes. Seven votes were declared invalid. Consequently, Suha won the election by a margin of 80 votes. This victory gives the PNC full control of the Meedhoo council.

In the initial April 4 elections, the Election Commission announced that Suha had narrowly won the council president seat with 393 votes compared to Shahid’s 392, a one-vote difference. However, the MDA filed a complaint after it was found that an ineligible person had voted at a polling station in L. Fonadhoo. Suha also submitted a complaint claiming some of Shahid’s votes were invalid.

Following a review of these complaints, the Election Commission concluded that Shahid had actually won by one vote. Suha appealed to the High Court, arguing that one of her votes had been invalidated due to a line drawn on the ballot paper. 

On May 14, the High Court determined that the disputed vote was valid and ordered the election results to be corrected. After the adjustment, both Suha and Shahid received 392 votes each, resulting in a tie and necessitating a re-vote to decide the island council president.