High Court ruling returns Meedhoo council race to tie

The race for the presidency of the Dh. Meedhoo Island Council has returned to a tie following a High Court ruling validating one of the disputed ballots from the recent local council election.

Under the provisional results initially announced by the Elections Commission, Suha Ibrahim of the People's National Congress secured 393 votes, while Mohamed Shahid of the Maldives Development Alliance received 392 votes.

Following an investigation into a complaint involving a vote cast by an ineligible individual, one ballot was nullified, resulting in both candidates holding 392 votes each.

A recount was later conducted after concerns were raised over the invalidation of another PNC vote. During the recount, an additional vote cast for Suha was declared invalid, reducing her total to 391 votes and giving Shahid the lead with 392 votes.

Shahid was subsequently declared the winner.

Suha later challenged the invalidation of two ballots at the High Court.

One ballot had been invalidated because the check mark next to the candidate’s name had been overwritten or shaded multiple times. The second ballot was declared invalid due to an additional mark appearing alongside the check mark.

In its ruling delivered on Thursday, the High Court upheld the Elections Commission’s decision to invalidate the ballot containing the additional mark.

However, the court overturned the decision regarding the overwritten check mark, stating that the voter’s intention remained clear as there were no other markings or drawings on the ballot paper.

The court therefore declared that ballot valid and ordered the Elections Commission to revise and reannounce the election results.

Following the ruling, both candidates now hold 392 votes each.

Under election rules, a by-election will now be required to determine the winner of the council presidency.