The Elections Commission has announced that the re-election for the president of Meedhoo Council will be held on Saturday, 13 June.

Voting will take place from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The council presidential race became one of the closest and most disputed contests in the April Local Council Elections.

Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) candidate Mohamed Shaahid and People's National Congress (PNC) candidate Suha Ibrahim contested for the seat.

In the initial count, Suha Ibrahim was declared the winner with 393 votes, while Mohamed Shaahid received 392 votes.

However, following a recount by the Elections Commission, one of Suha’s ballots was declared invalid, resulting in Shaahid being announced as the winner with 392 votes.

The matter was later taken to the High Court on behalf of Suha Ibrahim.

After reviewing the case, the High Court ruled that the disputed ballot was valid, bringing both candidates to an equal total of 392 votes each.

The court subsequently ordered the Elections Commission to re-announce the election results, leading to the decision to hold a re-election.