MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s Southwest State President Abdiasis Mohamed Hassan Laftagaren was re-elected to a second term Saturday in a Baidoa vote swiftly rejected by the federal government, intensifying a deepening political and security standoff.
The election, which also returned the regional parliament speaker to office, comes amid rising tensions between Mogadishu and the Southwest administration. The federal government has continued deploying heavily armed, Turkish-trained forces along with other units to Burhakabo, about 64 kilometers west of Baidoa, in what is widely viewed as preparation for a possible offensive to unseat Laftagaren.
Speaking in Mogadishu, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said Laftagaren had previously agreed to support a transition to universal suffrage elections, a process the federal government has invested significant resources in pursuing. Any reversal of that position, he said, would be unacceptable.
Laftagaren disputed that account after securing re-election, saying no such agreement existed. He alleged he had been forced at gunpoint to align with the federal government’s position during Somalia’s political crisis, claiming he was left with a stark choice: comply or face death.
The outcome drew immediate political backing from former Somali presidents Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, as well as former intelligence chief Fahad Yasin, who congratulated Laftagaren and expressed hope for progress under his leadership.
In a statement, the federal government condemned the vote as unconstitutional, describing it as a hastily conducted process completed within 24 hours and one that departed from agreements reached by the National Consultative Council to hold one-person, one-vote elections. It said the process fell short of being free and fair and was intended to derail plans for universal suffrage, adding that it would not recognize the result.
The competing claims underscore the widening rift between federal authorities and regional leadership, raising fresh uncertainty over Somalia’s electoral path and the risk of further confrontation on the ground.
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