Timeline
Political history of Somalia: a timeline of governments, votes and constitutions, 1943 to 2026
Modern Somali politics began with the Somali Youth Club, founded in Mogadishu in 1943. The Somali Republic of 1960 was a multi-party parliamentary democracy until the army took power on 21 October 1969. Siad Barre ruled through one party, the SRSP, until January 1991. After the state collapsed, Somaliland declared independence and regional administrations such as Puntland formed. Transitional governments followed from 2000, and in 2012 a Provisional Constitution set up a federal republic whose parliament and president have since been chosen by indirect, clan-based votes.
This page lists the turning points of Somali politics since 1943 in date order. Each line links to a full page with its sources. For how power is shared today, see politics of Somalia. For the economy over the same years, see Somalia's economic history.
1943 to 1960: parties and independence
1920 to 1960
May 1943
"The first modern Somali political party, the Somali Youth Club (SYC), [was] established in Mogadishu" (Library of Congress, Somalia: A Country Study). See the nationalist era.
1950–1960
The south was a UN trust territory under Italian administration; it elected its first assembly in 1956. See the UN trusteeship.
1960 to 1969
1960
The north held its first party elections; the SNL and USP won all but one of 33 seats (Library of Congress). See British Somaliland.
26 June and 1 July 1960
Independence and union as the Somali Republic. See independence and union.
1960 to 1969: the parliamentary republic
June 1961
A referendum approved the constitution. See the 1960 constitution.
30 March 1964
First national election: the SYL won 69 of 123 seats. See the 1964 election.
1969 to 1991
26 March 1969
Sixty-four parties stood; the SYL won 73 seats. See the 1969 election and the civilian era.
1969 to 1991: military and one-party rule
21 October 1969
The army took power and suspended the constitution (Library of Congress). See the Siad Barre era.
1976
The Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party was formed as "the country's sole legal political party" (IPU).
25 August 1979
A referendum approved a presidential constitution. See the 1979 referendum.
1979 and 1984
Single-list elections to the People's Assembly. See 1979 and 1984.
23 December 1986
Siad Barre, the only candidate, was elected President by direct vote. See the 1986 election.
1978–1991
Armed movements fought the government. See the armed movements.
1991 to 2012: collapse and transition
1991 to 2000
January 1991
Siad Barre fled; the USC named Ali Mahdi interim President. See the Interim Government of 1991.
May 1991
The SNM declared the Republic of Somaliland. See the history of Somaliland.
1991–2000
Faction war, UN missions and repeated peace conferences. See 1991–1999.
1998
Puntland was set up as a regional state within a future Somalia (UN Security Council, S/1999/882, para. 18). See the history of Puntland.
2000 to 2012
2000
The Arta conference in Djibouti formed the Transitional National Government; the SRRC opposed it. See the transitional governments and the SRRC.
2004
The Transitional Federal Parliament, chosen by clan, elected Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed President. See the Transitional Federal Parliament.
2006
The Islamic Courts held Mogadishu until Ethiopian forces intervened. See the Islamic Courts Union.
January 2009
An enlarged parliament elected the ARS leader Sharif Sheikh Ahmed President. See the ARS.
2012 to now: the federal republic
2012 to 2020
1 August 2012
A National Constituent Assembly adopted the Provisional Constitution, 621 to 13. See Somalia's constitutions.
10 September 2012
Parliament elected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, 190 to 79. See the 2012 election.
2013–2016
Federal member states were formed: Jubaland (2013), South West (2014), Galmudug (2015) and HirShabelle (2016); North Eastern State was recognised in 2025. See federal member states.
2016–2017
About 14,000 clan delegates chose the House of the People; state assemblies chose a new Upper House. Parliament elected Mohamed Abdullahi "Farmaajo" on 8 February 2017. See the 2016 parliamentary election and the 2017 presidential election.
2020 to now
15 May 2022
After a delayed electoral process, Parliament re-elected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, 214 to 110. See the 2022 election.
2024 and 2026
Parliament amended the constitution, chapters 1 to 4 on 30 March 2024 and chapters 5 to 15 on 4 March 2026. Puntland stopped recognising the federal government in 2024. See Somalia's constitutions and the timeline, 2012 to 2026.
Who suffered?
People excluded from power
under one-party rule from 1969 to 1991, and civilians in the wars that followed its collapse. See the Somali Civil War.
Sources differ
Elections since 2012
The UN has called each indirect vote more inclusive than the last while recording bribery and intimidation of delegates. See the 2016 parliamentary election.
Read the primary sources yourself
Sources
- text · countrystudies.us
- 1979 · archive.ipu.org
- PDF · documents.un.org
- Library of Congress · countrystudies.us
- Library of Congress · countrystudies.us
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Where it happened
Same era
- Australia18,401 people of Somali ancestry and 8,101 born in Somalia lived in Australia at the 2021 Census, more than half in Victoria. History, work, issues.
- Birmingham (Somali diaspora)About 17,000 to 21,600 Somalis live in Birmingham (Census 2021), mostly in Nechells, Newtown, Small Heath and Alum Rock. History, work, health and ties home.
- Bristol (Somali diaspora)9,167 people in Bristol identified as Somali or Somalilander in Census 2021, the city's largest minority group. Where they live, work, housing, leaders and ties home.
- Calgary, Alberta, Canada2,845 people of Somali origin lived in Calgary at the 2021 Census, plus 890 in Brooks. How they came, who serves them and what they face.
- Denmark (Somali diaspora)21,885 people of Somali origin lived in Denmark in 2026, half born there. Numbers, history, work, permit reviews, and ties home.
- DjiboutiAbout 13,900 refugees from Somalia live in Djibouti (Aug 2026): numbers since 1990, Ali Addeh, Holl-Holl, the 2017 refugee law, Arta 2000 and 2025 returns.
Keep reading
- Deaths in armed conflict in Somalia by year, 1989–2026Reported deaths from armed conflict in Somalia each year from 1989 to 2026, from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program, with what each period covers and the limits of the data.
- Ethiopia and Somalia at war: a timeline, 1527 to 2026A timeline of wars and armed confrontations between Ethiopia and Somalia, from Adal in the 16th century through 1964, 1977, 1982 and 2006, to the 2024 crisis, with links to each full page.
- History of Somaliland: a timeline from the Stone Age to 2024A dated history of Somaliland from the Stone Age, Zeila and Adal to British rule, the 1960 union, the war of the 1980s, the 1991 declaration and the elections since.
- History of Mogadishu: a timeline from the 1200s to todayA dated history of Mogadishu: the medieval sultanate and mosques, Ibn Battuta, the Portuguese, the Banaadir coast under Zanzibar and Italy, the capital of 1960, and the wars since 1991.
- History of Puntland: a timeline from the sultanates to 2026A dated history of Puntland: the Majeerteen sultanates, the SSDF, the Garowe conferences of 1998, the crisis of 2001–2002, Las Anod, piracy, and its break with Mogadishu in 2024.
- Military history of Somalia: a timeline from Adal to AUSSOMA dated military history of Somalia: Adal, the Dervishes, the army of 1960, the Ogaden war, the civil war, foreign interventions and the war against al-Shabaab.