Youth Empowerment, Information and Arts Minister Heena Waleed has secured the presidency of the People’s National Congress (PNC) Women’s Wing, while Ibrahim Abaan Abdul Latheef has secured the presidency of the party’s Youth Wing after both positions attracted only one candidate.
The positions were confirmed following the announcement of candidates for the PNC Senate elections, which are scheduled to take place from September 15 to 18.
As no other candidates applied to contest the two wing presidencies, Heena and Abaan secured their respective positions without the need for a vote.
Several other leadership positions within the two wings were also decided uncontested.
In the Women’s Wing, Aminath Hussain Shareef secured the Vice President position, while Aminath Naseeha was confirmed as Secretary and Aminath Shizleen as Treasurer.
The Youth Wing will be led by Abaan alongside Hassan Shaheed as Vice President. Ismail Azmee secured the Secretary position, while Mohamed Rifau secured the role of Treasurer.
Eight candidates compete for six PNC vice president positions
While the leadership of the two wings has already been determined, competition remains for several positions on the party’s Senate.
Eight candidates have entered the race for the six Vice President positions within the PNC.
They are Abdulla Raafiu, Chief Government Spokesperson Mohamed Hussain Shareef, widely known as Mundhu, Asmaa Rasheed, Fathimath Sauda, Ibrahim Shujaau, Ahmed Shiyam, Mohamed Nimal and Economic Development, Transport and Trade Minister Mohamed Saeed.
Competition is considerably higher for the general membership positions on the Senate.
A total of 22 candidates are contesting 10 Senate seats reserved for women, while 13 candidates are competing for seven positions allocated to youth members.
The largest field is for the Senate’s 18 general member positions, which have attracted 73 candidates.
The figures mean at least 116 candidates are competing across the four contested Senate categories identified in the candidate announcement, while the leadership positions that attracted single candidates have already effectively been decided.
PNC prepares to elect new Senate
The elections are part of the PNC’s process of selecting its Senate, one of the party’s key internal decision-making bodies.
Voting is scheduled to be conducted over four days from September 15 to September 18, with members choosing between candidates for the positions that remain contested.
PNC currently holds the dominant position in Maldivian politics. The party is led by President Dr Mohamed Muizzu and commands a large majority in the People’s Majlis following its landslide victory in the 2024 parliamentary elections.
The party’s parliamentary strength has subsequently grown further through political defections and changes in party affiliation, giving the PNC significant influence across both the executive and legislature.
The upcoming internal elections will determine a broader group of officials responsible for the party’s organisational and political activities as it continues to consolidate its structure following its rapid expansion over recent years.
For the Women’s and Youth Wings, however, the senior leadership has already been settled without a contest, with Heena and Abaan set to head the two organisations.
