Parliament has approved the appointment of Mohamed Shakeel as President of the Elections Commission of Maldives (ECM).
During parliamentary sitting, 51 members voted in favour of the appointment, while eight voted against. Under the current composition of the Parliament, at least 30 votes are required to approve appointments to independent institutions.
The position became vacant following the resignation of former Elections Commission President Mohamed Zahid from both the presidency and his membership of the commission. Under the law, a president can only be appointed after the commission has its full complement of members.
With parliamentary approval, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu appointed Shakeel as a member of the Elections Commission on 24 June, restoring the commission to its full strength of five members.
Following the appointment, the President submitted Shakeel's name to the Parliament on Monday for approval as President of the Elections Commission.
Shakeel previously served as a member of the Elections Commission from 3 December 2014 to 9 May 2018. Before that, he served as the commission's Director General from 1 September 2013 to 3 December 2014.
Most recently, Shakeel served as Managing Director of the Maldives Hajj Corporation.