The election of the House of Representatives and constituency members in Somaliland has begun in earnest today for the first time in all areas of Somaliland.
The election will be contested by more than one million people, with nearly 1,000 candidates running for the House of Representatives and local councils in Somaliland.
Members of the Somaliland Electoral Commission say the election is being overseen by more than 14,000 staff, as well as 700 international delegates.
General security in all areas of Somaliland has been tightened, with all traffic suspended except those participating in the election process.
A statement from the Somaliland Police regarding security said all transport in Somaliland has been suspended from 3am-6pm until 31st of May.
“The Somaliland Police Force is informing the general public that the movement of vehicles has been suspended and the land, air and sea borders are closed from 3:00 am to 6:00 pm on 31 May.
Only vehicles with a National Electoral Commission license plate are allowed to operate, and the security agencies are urged to fully comply with the above directives and arrest anyone who violates them with an iron fist”.
Representatives from the international community are monitoring the person-to-person elections in Somaliland, with the bulk of the funding being injected by the Somaliland government and some supporting governments.
