By Asha Elmi

JOWHAR, Somalia – The Hirshabelle Regional State of Somalia has today filled two seats in the Federal Parliament that had been vacant for nearly two years, with the electoral districts being within Hirshabelle.

The seats in the Lower House of Parliament were officially filled during a ceremony held in Jowhar, attended by government officials from Hirshabelle, civil society representatives, and elders from the clans of the candidates, as reported by Hirshabelle media.

The media further reported that the election results were announced by the Chairman of the Election Commission, Abdikadir Mohamed Cadow, who declared that Abdikarin Mohamed Diriye and Abdulqadir Mahmoud Mohamed had won the seats for HOP097 and HOP098, respectively.

These seats had been vacant following the deaths of Minister Khadija Mohamed Diriye and MP Mahmoud Mohamed (Seysey).

Abdikarin Mohamed Diriye, the brother of MP Khadija Mohamed Diriye, won HOP097 with 78 votes, defeating Mohamed Mahmoud Geeddi. Similarly, Abdulqadir Mahmoud Mohamed, the son of MP Mahmoud Mohamed (Seysey), won HOP098 with 90 votes, beating Ahmed Adan Muxyadin.

The vacancies arose following the death of Minister Khadija Mohamed Diriye in Djibouti in December 2023 and MP Mahmoud Mohamed (Seysey) in March 2023.