NAIROBI, Dec 25, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, will head to 
the polls on Thursday for local elections -- the first by universal suffrage 
in nearly 60 years -- under a complete citywide lockdown amid security 
concerns.

The east African country is struggling to emerge from decades of conflict and 
chaos, battling a bloody Islamist insurgency and frequent natural disasters.

Thursday's polls will serve as a pilot test of the direct voting system 
championed by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, amid opposition from member 
states who say it is a bid to centralise power in Mogadishu.

According to the country's electoral body more than 1,600 candidates will 
contest 390 local council seats in the southeastern Banadir region.

Key opposition parties have boycotted the election, accusing the federal 
government of "unilateral election processes".

Somalia's system of direct voting was abolished after Siad Barre took power 
in 1969. Since the fall of his authoritarian government in 1991, the 
country's political system has revolved around a clan-based structure.

Universal suffrage is, however, practised in the breakaway region of 
Somaliland, which declared independence in 1991 but has never been 
internationally recognised.

In May 2023, the semi-autonomous northern state of Puntland held local 
elections by direct vote, but later abandoned the system for local and 
regional polls in January.

The upcoming vote has been postponed three times this year.

The volatile nation has stepped up security ahead of the polls, with security 
minister Abdullahi Sheikh Ismail saying more than 10,000 security personnel 
will be deployed across the capital.

Somalia has been battling Al-Shabaab since the mid-2000s, but security has 
deteriorated sharply this year, with the group retaking dozens of towns and 
villages and reversing most gains from the 2022-2023 military campaign.

The electoral body boss Abdikarin Ahmed Hassan on Sunday said all movement 
would be restricted on election day and "the whole country will be shut 
down".

Nearly 400,000 voters are expected to cast ballots, with Hassan saying buses 
will be provided to transport voters to polling stations.

On Monday, the civil aviation authority announced that the country's main 
airport would be closed on voting day.

--"Stage-managed"--

While the vote marks a pivotal moment for Somalia, security analyst Samira 
Gaid expressed scepticism, saying the process was "stage-managed" to make the 
Horn of Africa nation "appear like a democracy"

"There is close to zero civilian participation. It's mostly a government and 
security forces operation," Gaid told AFP, adding that voter registration 
exercise had not been successful.

The political strain is fuelling tensions ahead of next year's national 
elections, with parliament's mandate expiring in April and the president's 
term ending in May.

The International Crisis Group has warned that the situation resembles the 
2021 political crisis that erupted under former president Mohamed Abdullahi 
"Farmajo". That led to clashes between clan-based factions after he failed to 
organise parliamentary and presidential elections before his mandate expired.

With the clock ticking, there is still no consensus on how the 2026 election 
will be conducted, and the opposition and federal member states are 
threatening to run a parallel process if no agreement is reached.