Somalia MPs to elect a new leader today

Somalia federal Members of parliament are ser to elect the next President of Somalia to lead the country for the next four years. Potential alliances and a lot of back room deals have been concluded and now every candidate wants to be the next leader.

Some have already announced that they have quitted the race and endorsed other candidates. The incumbent President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo is seeking reelection and if he wins, he will be the first Somali leader to be reelected for two consecutive terms.

Farmajo is facing two of his predecessors. Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud who are widely seen as possible winners. Fawzia Yusuf Haji Adam,is the only female candidate in the list. She was the first Somali female foreign affairs minister and now if the Mps elect her as president, she will become the first Somali female President.

There will be at least three rounds of the election until a candidate receives two thirds of the votes. Meanwhile, the Somali capital Mogadishu is in a curfew, all roads and businesses were closed down to tighten security over the presidential election.