Why candidates opposing HSM hoping for a second round in FEB 8 poll ?
The clock is ticking and the 24 presidential candidates have been up and down in last minute canvassing for support from the 329 Mps and Senators who on February 8 will decide the man to occupy Villa Somalia
It’s a poll that will be decided by several factors but most significant being clan allegiance , finances and charisma to convince a parliament that is made up of mostly new faces who may be receptive to change
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud team is bragging to have the most of Mps if Sundays dinner at syl is anything to go by According to the team 130 MPs were present at the dinner all pledging support to the incumbent
Analysts place Omar Abdirashid Sharmake , Mohamed Abddullah Mohamed Farmajo and Sharif Sheikh Ahmed as the top contenders who stand a chance to give Hassan Sheikh Mohamud commendable competition
The votes of the three top contenders who are seeking to unseat the incumbent range from 70 to 80
Mohamud may benefit on the tyranny of numbers if Mps allied to Sharif Hassan Adan will vote for him after the South West State President was locked out of the race as per the 4.5 system
That means that the three other top contenders opposing Mohamud will be hoping that the voting goes to a second round to keep alive their hopes of one of them clinching victory
“The top contenders beside Hassan Sheikh depend on their survival on a second round. Mohamud,s nightmare would be a second or third round. This is a parliament with new Mps who are likely to vote for change” Fowzia Abukar a Somali based political commentator told Radio Dalsan
Mohamud will be crossing his fingers hoping that the voting does not go to a second round as this would mean that Mps who did not for him in the first round are most likely to put their votes to the basket of any candidate opposing the incumbent
The tyranny of numbers enjoyed by Mohamud will have swayed in favor of the remaining opposing candidate