WATCH: Eastleigh residents celebrate Somalia presidential election results
Residents of Eastleigh, a Nairobi suburb, took to the streets to celebrate the victory of Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud as Somalia President.
The celebrations were spotted just after midnight when the results were announced in Mogadishu.
Eastleigh is not only a business hub for malls, second hand clothes, travel and other goods, but also a habitat for millions of Muslims of Somalia descent.
It’s almost 2AM. Huge celebrations im Eastleigh, Nairobi following the election of new Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. #SomaliaElections2022 pic.twitter.com/E84wsFc8en
— Ahmed Mohamed ((ASMALi)) (@Asmali77) May 15, 2022
Mohamud beat incumbent Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed by 166 votes out of a possible 328 for a simple majority in the third round of an intense election.
The election which was broadcasted on national TV was held at a military camp in Mogadishu for security reasons, and broadcast live on Somali State TV.
Farmaajo immediately conceded defeat with a statement on his twitter account.
I congratulate the president-elect, my brother, H.E @HassanSMohamud on his election as our nation's 10th president. I urge all my fellow citizens to support & pray for his success. I would like to express my appreciation to everyone who contributed to smooth & peaceful elections.
— Mohamed Farmaajo (@M_Farmaajo) May 15, 2022
The departing president’s tenure will be remembered for his frosty ties with Nairobi, include a maritime dispute along the Indian Ocean that went all the way to the International Court of Justice.
Kenya is on record stating it will not accept the court’s ruling while vowing to protect its territory.
““The decision was clearly erroneous,” read a statement by Kenya’s Presidency adding that the verdict “embodies a perpetuation of the ICJ’s jurisdictional overreach and raises a fundamental question on the respect of the sovereignty and consent of States to international judicial processes.”
President Mahomoud will serve for his second time after being Somali’s president from 2012 to 2017.
The 66-year-old is the leader of the Union for Peace and Development party, which commands a majority of seats in both legislative chambers. He has his hands full, in a bid to bring peace and stability to a country that has been in a lawless state for the better part of the last three decades.