President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih won the Presidential Primary Election of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), held on Saturday.

This is the first time in Maldives history that a sitting President has run in an election-primary.

President Solih faced off against the party’s president and Parliament Speaker Mohamed Nasheed, and has received 24,982 votes so far, compared to Nasheed’s 15,905 votes. President Solih received 61 per cent of the cast, according to MDP.

During his campaign, President Solih stated MDP would have a future in Maldives politics only by partnering coalition with minority parties.

He has repeatedly stated that he will form a coalition with other parties, which he refers to as the “winning formula,” in order to continue the MDP Presidency.

Despite several challenges, President Solih’s landslide victory in Saturday’s election secures him the presidential ticket of the largest political party in Maldives.

Solih, 60, who assumed the presidency in 2018 for a five-year term, is the 7th president of the republic of Maldives. He will run for the post of president in the September election.