First round of presidential election produces no

winner, three candidates to compete in second round of voting

Mogadishu, 8 February 2017 Federal President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud emerged
as the front-runner in the first round of the presidential voting by members of
Somalias federal parliament today but fell far short of the required two-thirds
majority to win outright, forcing a second round of balloting among the top four
recipients of the ballots cast.
According to results announced by the Speaker of the House of the People, Mohamed
Osman Jawari, President Hassan Sheikh received 88 votes, followed by former Prime
Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo who garnered 72 votes. Former Federal
President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed finished third with 49 votes.
Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke came in fourth with 37 votes and
subsequently withdrew from the second round of voting.
A total of 328 members of the federal parliament participated in the initial voting,
which lasted 90 minutes. Twenty-four candidates had registered for the presidential
election but three withdrew prior to the start of todays voting. The election is being
held under tight security measures in a hangar belonging to the Somali Air Force at
Mogadishus international airport.
A two-thirds majority of the votes cast in the second round is required to win the
presidential election. If none of the three remaining candidates receives that
percentage, a third and final round of balloting will be held between the two aspirants
who receive the largest number of votes in the second round.
The balloting is being witnessed by prominent members of the international
community led by the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union
Commission for Somalia, Francisco Caetano Madeira, and the Special Representative
of the UN Secretary-General for Somalia, Michael Keating.