Better ballots or better candidates? Maldives grapples with crisis of choice

The proposed ranked choice fix targets the mechanics of voting. But voters appear to want different choices, not just a different way to choose.

Political disillusionment is especially high among younger people. Over the past decade, presidential election turnout dropped from a record high 91 percent in 2013 to 79 percent in 2023. In the second round, invalid votes reached a record 7,888, including many who deliberately spoiled their ballots in protest.

The Maldives Independent asked a few young people how they feel about the proposed electoral reforms.

A 23-year-old woman who works as a legal trainee in Malé wrote in "None of the Above" on the ballot during the last presidential election because "none of the candidates were promising".

She supported ranked choice voting with a "none of the above" option.

A 28-year-old woman in PR and marketing said she did not know much about ranked choice voting but she would support it nonetheless because it sounds more efficient.

Rahuma Rasheed, a 31-year-old woman who works for a tech startup in Malé, hasn't voted in a presidential election since 2013. "I just feel like it doesn't make an impact. Whoever comes to the presidency, it is still bad for me and us as a company as well." she said.

"Previous government screwed us over in bids. This government stopped the bids entirely," she said, referring to government support for the private sector or the tech industry.

Even though it's "irresponsible" to avoid voting, she said it feels "like a complete waste of my time to go and stay to vote." Instead preferential voting, she prefers a change that could result in better candidates: "Most of the time I absolutely [expletive] hate all the options. I just want better options which aren't there."

Rahuma supported having an option to "reject" all the candidates on the ballot.

"I think there needs to be strict requirements for those who can even compete in the election. Because now it's a business tycoon and that guy's brother. Not based on merit at all. The other thing is the amount of money that's spent on the election from the government coffers. It should not be allowed at all," she said.

In April, President Muizzu sought the support of the ruling party's supermajority in parliament to shift to preferential voting.

Muizzu previously announced plans to seek a public referendum during the Republic Day ceremony in November last year. The aim of ranked choice voting was to eliminate the need for a runoff round to decide the outcome, he said.

"Personally, I believe this is the way forward: a preferential vote that can decide who becomes president without a runoff, even if the first-round results would otherwise require one. This would mean the election is decided in a single round," he said.

"I think some countries, even neighbouring countries, use this system. But after research, if it is found to be the best option for our country, and if the people agree, I intend to make this change so that the next presidential elections are decided in one vote. I believe this will also be much less costly. If a referendum is needed for that, I want to announce that today as well."

Since then, the ruling party has proposed legislation that set out the terms for holding public referendums. The bill is currently under review at the committee stage.