# The 2003 Somaliland presidential election

> Somaliland's first contested presidential vote, April 2003: three parties, an 80-vote margin, Kulmiye's challenge, the High Court ruling and Riyale's swearing-in.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/history/somaliland-presidential-election-2003/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## In short

"'Presidential elections' took place in 'Somaliland' on 14 April 2003," the UN Secretary-General reported. On 19 April the electoral commission announced that the sitting President, [Dahir Riyale Kahin](/en/people/dahir-riyale-kahin/), "had won the election by a margin of 80 votes out of almost 500,000 cast". The Kulmiye party "rejected the results, questioning their accuracy and contending that political pressure had been exerted on the Commission" ([UN Security Council, S/2003/636, para. 21](https://documents.un.org/api/symbol/access?s=S/2003/636&l=en&t=pdf)).

For all of [Somaliland](/en/states/somaliland-1991-to-2026/)'s elections, see [elections in Somaliland](/en/institutions/elections-in-somaliland/). For the next presidential vote, see [the 2010 Somaliland presidential election](/en/history/somaliland-presidential-election-2010/).

## The candidates

From the UN report ([S/2003/636, para. 21](https://documents.un.org/api/symbol/access?s=S/2003/636&l=en&t=pdf)):

| Candidate | Party | Description in the UN report |
|---|---|---|
| Dahir Riyale Kahin | UDUB (Allied People's Democratic Party) | the incumbent |
| Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud "Silanyo" | Kulmiye (Solidarity Party) | "a veteran politician" |
| Faisal Ali Warabe | UCID (Justice and Welfare Party) | "a civil engineer from the diaspora" |

Riyale had become President on 3 May 2002, when [Mohamed Haji Ibrahim Egal](/en/people/mohamed-haji-ibrahim-egal/) died in office ([World Statesmen, Somalia](https://www.worldstatesmen.org/Somalia.html)). See [presidents of Somaliland](/en/institutions/presidents-of-somaliland/).

## The vote

- **Polling.** "Reports indicate that the polls were conducted in a peaceful manner, with trained 'Somaliland' observers present at polling stations" ([S/2003/636, para. 22](https://documents.un.org/api/symbol/access?s=S/2003/636&l=en&t=pdf)).
- **Observers.** "There was no official international monitoring of the elections." Representatives of South African non-governmental organisations and the Inter-Africa Group, and diplomats from Canada, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States based in Addis Ababa and Nairobi, were present (same source).

The figures as given by the African Elections Database ([as cited by Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_Somaliland_presidential_election)):

| Candidate | Party | Running mate | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---:|---:|
| Dahir Riyale Kahin | UDUB | Ahmed Yusuf Yasin | 205,595 | 42.08% |
| Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud "Silanyo" | Kulmiye | Abdirahman Saylici | 205,515 | 42.07% |
| Faisal Ali Warabe | UCID | Mohammad Rashid | 77,433 | 15.85% |
| Valid votes | | | 488,543 | |
| Invalid or blank | | | 10,096 | |
| Total | | | 498,639 | |

## The dispute

- **11 May 2003.** The High Court "announced the official results, amending the figures released earlier by the Commission and placing UDUB in the lead by 217 votes" ([S/2003/636, para. 23](https://documents.un.org/api/symbol/access?s=S/2003/636&l=en&t=pdf)).
- **Kulmiye's position.** Its chairman "reiterated that he would accept neither the Commission's results nor the High Court's decision" (same source).
- **16 May 2003.** Dahir Riyale Kahin and his deputy, Ahmed Yusuf Yasin, "were sworn into office by the president of the 'Somaliland' High Court" (same source).
- **Terms extended.** At the same time the House of Elders "extended the tenure of the House of Representatives for two years and its own term for three years" (same source). The House of Representatives was elected in 2005. See [the 2005 Somaliland parliamentary election](/en/history/somaliland-parliamentary-election-2005/).
- **Seven years later.** Silanyo beat Riyale in the 2010 election and was sworn in on 27 July 2010 ([S/2010/447, para. 10](https://documents.un.org/api/symbol/access?s=S/2010/447&l=en&t=pdf)).

## Who suffered?

- **Kulmiye voters,** whose party said the count was wrong and that the commission was under political pressure (S/2003/636).

## Sources differ

- **The margin.** The electoral commission gave 80 votes. The High Court gave 217. Wikipedia's text gives 214 for the court's figure.
- **The result.** Kulmiye rejected both the commission's and the court's figures. The commission and the court declared Riyale the winner.

## Read the primary sources yourself

- UN Secretary-General, report on Somalia, S/2003/636 (10 June 2003), paras. 21–23: [PDF](https://documents.un.org/api/symbol/access?s=S/2003/636&l=en&t=pdf).

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