In a sweeping constitutional overhaul, more than a decade in the making, Somalia’s bicameral parliament voted Wednesday to extend presidential and parliamentary terms from four years to five, pushing back elections originally scheduled for May 2026.
MOGADISHU — Somalia’s parliament has approved a sweeping constitutional overhaul that extends the presidential term by one year and delays the country’s upcoming national elections, in a historic and contentious vote that brings more than thirteen years of constitutional deliberation to a close.
On Wednesday, 222 lawmakers from Somalia’s lower and upper chambers of parliament, out of a total of 329, voted by acclamation to adopt the new constitution, which transitions the country’s governing document from provisional status to the supreme law of the land. The joint sitting saw 186 members of parliament and 37 senators cast votes in favour of the landmark changes.
The new constitution extends the presidential term from four to five years, and provides that the president will continue to be elected by parliament rather than by a direct popular vote, even as members of parliament will themselves be chosen directly by citizens. Under the revised framework, the prime minister is appointed by the president but may be removed by parliament.
The vote effectively pushes back elections, which had been scheduled for May 2026 by at least one year, a delay that critics argue is less about constitutional necessity than political convenience.
“Today is a historic day for it is the official completion of the constitution which had dragged on for a long period.” — President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud hailed the vote as a long-awaited milestone, speaking at a press conference in Mogadishu on Wednesday. He was careful, however, not to explicitly claim that the constitutional changes automatically extend his personal tenure, a sensitivity flagged by analysts monitoring the international community’s reaction.
Sheikh Aden Mohamed Nur, speaker of the House of the People, called it a day of historic reckoning: the constitution had been in provisional form since August 2012, when more than 800 delegates endorsed a transitional text at a conference in Mogadishu under an interim government.
But opposition lawmakers were quick to condemn the process. The Council of Opposition Parties released a statement denouncing the vote as a troubling lurch toward authoritarianism and a disregard for the democratic will of the Somali people. Opposition figures allege that the government used the constitutional process as a vehicle to entrench itself and avoid electoral accountability.
The day after the vote, analysts who closely follow Somalia were still debating its precise implications. Samira Gaid, an analyst with Balqiis, a Mogadishu-based think tank, noted that the constitutional amendments, which have been criticised by opposition lawmakers, do not automatically extend the current president’s term, and that the matter hinges significantly on interpretation.
Gaid also observed that elections slated for May would likely be delayed regardless, given that no agreed electoral framework currently exists. That assessment adds a layer of pragmatic complexity to a debate that has so far been dominated by competing political narratives.
The constitutional changes come after President Mohamud brokered a deal last August with some opposition leaders that envisioned direct elections for lawmakers in 2026, while the president would continue to be selected by parliament. However, a 2024 law had previously restored universal suffrage ahead of the anticipated vote, setting up a collision between competing electoral visions.
Several international partners have signalled unease over the vote. Embassies of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union have called for transparency and adherence to democratic principles, while acknowledging the formidable security and governance challenges Somalia continues to face.
Somalia has been without a strong central government since the fall of Mohamed Siad Barre’s autocratic rule in 1991. While an African Union peacekeeping mission has succeeded in pushing back the al-Qaeda-linked militant group al-Shabaab from major urban centres, the group still controls vast tracts of the countryside and retains the capacity to strike population centres with regularity.
The new constitution establishes formal oversight mechanisms intended to prevent abuse of office, ensure transparency, and uphold the rule of law provisions that critics say must be matched by political will to be meaningful.
The constitution is expected to be formally signed into law by President Mohamud, replacing the provisional document adopted in 2012. With that signing, the focus will shift to whether the government is willing to engage the opposition in genuine dialogue, set a credible new date for elections, and demonstrate a commitment to the democratic norms its new constitution enshrines.
For millions of Somalis who have lived through decades of conflict and political instability, the stakes of that question could hardly be higher. Whether Wednesday’s vote goes down in history as a democratic turning point or as the moment a fragile transition began to reverse will depend, in large part, on what happens next.
Reporting by Kivu Post Staff, with additional information from Reuters and regional correspondents. Editing by Kivu Post Editorial Desk.