| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Majlis / People's Majlis |
| Structure of parliament |
Unicameral |
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
22 January 2005 |
| Purpose of elections |
Elections were held for all the seats in Parliament on the normal expiry of the members' term of office. |
The elections were originally scheduled for 31 December 2004 but were postponed due to the impact of the December 2004 tsunami on this archipelago of some 280,000 inhabitants.
All the 149 candidates ran as independents since political parties remained banned in the country. Candidates' political beliefs were nevertheless widely known. The opposition Maldives Democratic Party (MDP), led by Mr. Mohamed Latheef, operates in exile from Sri Lanka.
On election day the police arrested 20 opposition party supporters who had recorded election officials trying to close a polling booth while some 100 voters were still waiting to cast their vote. In the Maldives, voting usually continues even after the official closing time if there are still citizens waiting.
Officials from the Commonwealth and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation monitored the election. They did not release immediate comments.
According to the commissioner of elections, turnout exceeded 70 per cent of 157,027 eligible voters.
The MDP claimed it had won 18 of the 42 seats, reducing the number of pro-government members to 22, with two independents. However, the government insisted that at least 30 of newly elected parliamentarians were pro-government and only 8 were pro-MDP.
Several reports indicate that the MDP has increased its number of seats from the seven it held after the previous elections in November 1999.
After the elections, President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who has been in power since 1978, confirmed his plans to establish democracy within one year. The reform will include the establishment of a multi-party system, the office of prime minister as well as a supreme court. The longest-serving political leader in Asia also mentioned that the president should be elected directly by the people. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 22 January 2005 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
157'027
111'946 (71.29%)
|
|
Notes
|
Number of votes cast: 223,892*
Blank or invalid ballot papers: 3,672
Valid votes: 220,220
*Voters are allowed to vote for two candidates on a single ballot. |
| Distribution of votes |
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| Distribution of seats |
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| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
44
6
12.00%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
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| Distribution of seats according to profession |
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| Comments |
2 Members out of the 42 elected Members are women.
4 Members out of the 8 appointed Members are women. |
A historical Archive of past election results for this chamber can be found on a separate page