Somaliland: Muse Bihi Abdi wins presidential election

Ruling Kulmiye party candidate claims 55.59 percent of the vote

By Hassan Istiila

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) - The ruling Kulmiye party candidate Muse Bihi Abdi was elected president, the Somaliland National Electoral Commission (NEC) announced on Tuesday.

The ruling party’s candidate obtained 55.59 percent of the vote. The candidate of Somaliland’s main opposition Wadani party followed with 40.75 percent.

More than 700,000 voters cast their votes during the election that took place in six regions in Somaliland on Nov. 13.

Muse Bihi Abdi, 69, will be leading Somaliland for the next five years.

More than 25 years ago, after a ferocious civil war, northwestern Somalia broke away from the rest of the country and declared itself independent.

Somaliland is not officially recognized as a sovereign state, but it has achieved relative stability since it declared independence in 1991.

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