Political parties and movements
Tayo Political Party
Tayo is a Somali political party founded in early 2012 by former Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed 'Farmaajo' and members of his 2010 to 2011 cabinet. Tayo means 'quality'. It became the de facto ruling party when parliament elected Farmaajo President on 8 February 2017, and went into opposition when he lost to Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on 15 May 2022, by 110 votes to 214.
What is Tayo?
Tayo is a political party in Somalia. Its full Somali name is Xisbiga Siyaasadda ee Tayo, the Tayo Political Party. Tayo means "quality" (Wikipedia, Tayo Political Party).
Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed "Farmaajo" founded it in early 2012 with members of his former cabinet. He had been Prime Minister from November 2010 to June 2011. SomaliaReport wrote that the name was chosen to reflect the good public view of that short premiership (SomaliaReport, 2012, via Wikipedia). See Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo.
Wikipedia describes the party as liberal (same source). In May 2015 the party publicly objected to how the government had appointed the members of a new electoral commission (Ceegaag Online, 21 May 2015).
How did Tayo's leader do in presidential votes?
From 2012 to 2022 the President was elected by members of parliament, who were themselves chosen by clan delegates. Parties could not stand as parties. See Elections in Somalia.
- 10 September 2012: Farmaajo stood and came seventh in the first round (Wikipedia). Hassan Sheikh Mohamud won.
- 8 February 2017: Farmaajo won. In the second round he had 184 votes, against 97 for the sitting President, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, and 46 for Sharif Sheikh Ahmed. Hassan Sheikh conceded (UNSOM, 8 Feb 2017). See the 2017 presidential election.
- 15 May 2022: Farmaajo lost in the third round, 110 votes to 214, to Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, and conceded (Garowe Online, 15 May 2022; Al Jazeera, 15 May 2022). See the 2022 presidential election.
Tayo in government, 2017 to 2022
After the 2017 vote, Tayo became the de facto ruling party. Several members took posts in government. The party's chair, Maryam Qaasim, became Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management (Wikipedia).
Farmaajo's term ended in February 2021 without an election (Al Jazeera, 15 May 2022). On 12 April 2021 the House of the People extended the terms of parliament and President by two years. Fighting broke out in Mogadishu, and the extension was reversed on 1 May 2021 (UN Security Council, S/2021/485).
Tayo since 2022
Under the November 2024 Political Parties law, parties must register with the National Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (SONNA, Nov 2024). The commission had certified 61 parties by September 2025 (Dawan Africa, 2025).
Opposition leaders met in Nairobi in May 2025 over the dispute about the electoral model (AllAfrica, 21 May 2025). The opposition later split. Some members of the Somali Salvation Forum signed an August 2025 deal with the government, others rejected it, and four figures resigned from the forum (Somali Guardian, Aug 2025; AllAfrica, 25 Aug 2025).
Related pages
Sources
- Wikipedia, Tayo Political Party · en.wikipedia.org
- Ceegaag Online, 21 May 2015 · ceegaag.com
- UNSOM, 8 Feb 2017 · unsom.unmissions.org
- Garowe Online, 15 May 2022 · garoweonline.com
- Al Jazeera, 15 May 2022 · aljazeera.com
- UN Security Council, S/2021/485 · documents.un.org
- SONNA, Nov 2024 · sonna.so
- Dawan Africa, 2025 · dawan.africa
- AllAfrica, 21 May 2025 · allafrica.com
- Somali Guardian, Aug 2025 · somaliguardian.com
- AllAfrica, 25 Aug 2025 · allafrica.com
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