Mogadishu holds first local vote in decades

MOGADISHU:

Somalians voted on Thursday in the Mogadishu region's first direct local election in nearly 60 years, despite security concerns and a boycott by opposition leaders.

The election is seen as a test ahead of the 2026 presidential ballot, in a country struggling to emerge from decades of conflict and chaos, an Islamist insurgency and frequent natural disasters.

There were long queues outside several polling stations early Thursday, but numbers had dwindled significantly by early afternoon, an AFP correspondent saw.

"This is a great day," said Guhad Ali, 37, showing the ink on his finger proving he had cast his ballot.

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

The government said it had deployed more than 10,000 security personnel on the streets of Mogadishu.