Mogadishu (Somalia Today) — A Somali opposition alliance said Saturday it had endorsed a transitional direct election model, presenting it as a compromise to end a widening political dispute over the country’s electoral process and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s mandate.
The Somali Future Council said it had approved a framework for “transitional direct elections” designed to move Somalia towards a nationally agreed system with political legitimacy and public confidence.
In a statement dated June 20, the council said the decision was rooted in “political concession” and the need to respond to “the urgent demand of the Somali people for a swift resolution to election disputes”.
The announcement comes after weeks of rising tension in Mogadishu, where opposition leaders have accused Mohamud of seeking to extend his rule through disputed constitutional changes and a one-sided electoral process.
Government officials reject the charge, saying the administration wants to end Somalia’s long reliance on indirect clan-based selection and move the country towards one-person, one-vote elections.
Direct vote
Somalia has not held a universal direct national election since 1969.
Since the collapse of the state in 1991, the country has relied on political settlements and clan-based power-sharing to select leaders, with the 4.5 formula dividing representation among major clans and minority groups.
Mohamud’s government has insisted that direct elections should replace the old system, arguing that ordinary Somalis should choose their representatives rather than leaving power in the hands of elders, delegates and political brokers.
The government has already pushed ahead with direct local voting in Mogadishu and South West State, despite opposition boycotts and accusations that the process lacked consensus.
Mogadishu held local council elections in December, the capital’s first direct vote in more than five decades. South West State followed in May, with election officials saying voters cast ballots across 13 districts in Lower Shabelle, Bay and Bakool.
The Somali Future Council said its proposed model would combine direct voting with safeguards for Somalia’s existing power-sharing arrangement.
“This new framework balances the right of Somali citizens to freely and directly elect their representatives, while preserving the 4.5 clan representation system,” it said.
The council said the model would apply only during a transitional period and would aim to give voters a direct role without abandoning the political formula that has underpinned Somalia’s fragile federal system for more than two decades.
It also said it opposed any unilateral electoral process whose outcome had already been decided, or any vote designed to extend the president’s time in office.
The council called for a halt to “one-sided elections whose results have already been predetermined” and said negotiations should focus on a credible process that makes the public vote the foundation of political legitimacy.
Mandate dispute
The dispute sharpened after parliament approved constitutional amendments earlier this year, including changes that opposition figures say could extend the terms of current federal institutions from four to five years.
Mohamud has defended the changes, saying the amended constitution gives federal institutions a five-year mandate and that the government’s term runs until May 2027.
Opposition leaders say the changes lack broad consensus and cannot apply to the current administration.
The dispute has drawn in federal member states, former presidents, former prime ministers and other political figures, many of whom accuse the government of pushing through major constitutional and electoral changes without enough consultation.
Puntland and Jubaland have been among the strongest critics of the federal government’s approach, deepening a wider rift between Mogadishu and some regional administrations.
The Somali Future Council said Saturday that any election settlement must come through talks and political agreement.
It said it would present “the details, guiding principles and implementation procedures” for the transitional direct election model once formal negotiations begin.
Mogadishu clashes
The statement follows deadly tensions in the capital earlier this month, when government forces and opposition-allied militias exchanged fire in parts of Mogadishu ahead of planned protests.
The fighting involved armed men linked to former prime minister Hassan Ali Khaire and former president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, two leading opposition figures who have accused the government of using force to silence political opponents.
Sharif said government forces had targeted his home.
“The government forces encircled and attacked my house. Their aggressive attack doesn’t scare me; I will fight back,” he said in a video message.
Khaire also accused government forces of attacking a gathering at his residence.
“We are under attack,” he said. “For the second time in less than 24 hours, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has directed armed forces against our peaceful gatherings.”
The government rejected the opposition’s account. Police said the violence did not amount to preparation for peaceful demonstrations but involved “coordinated armed acts” that threatened the security and stability of the capital.
Security officials said they had recovered heavy weapons during an operation at Khaire’s residence, while residents reported heavy gunfire, explosions and families fleeing several neighbourhoods.
Clan elders later helped calm the situation, but the clashes underscored the risk that Somalia’s election dispute could escalate into armed conflict.
Fragile opening
The opposition council’s statement marks a shift from outright rejection of the government’s electoral roadmap towards a conditional alternative.
Its formula accepts the principle of direct elections but insists they must be transitional, negotiated and tied to the 4.5 power-sharing system.
That position could offer a possible opening for talks, though major disagreements remain over the constitution, the length of the current mandate, the role of federal member states and the timetable for any vote.
Somalia’s political crisis also comes as the country continues to battle Al-Shabaab, manage security after the drawdown of African Union forces, and rebuild state institutions with support from international partners.
A prolonged election dispute could distract leaders from security priorities and weaken cooperation between the federal government and regional administrations.
The Somali Future Council said the country needed an agreed political path that could restore trust and avoid further instability.
It said the proposed model could help ensure that “the vote of the Somali people becomes the basis of political legitimacy”.
