As a computer science graduate, Ilyas Labeeb led his family’s modest electronic repair business from a cramped room to become one of Maldives’ biggest information technology companies during the 2000s. Now, the former executive-turned-lawmaker aspires to transform his island country through politics, not business.

Known for its idyllic white sand beaches, turquoise waters, and luxury resorts, Maldives comprises nearly 1,200 islands across the Indian Ocean. Ruled for three decades by an autocratic leader, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, the South Asian country, located southwest of India, elected its first democratic president in 2008.

But the nascent democracy has had its share of political dramas, including coup claims, corruption scandals, assassination attempts, and the imprisonment of political leaders. In recent years, the country’s strategic maritime location and shipping lanes have also become competing interests for India and China, which have asserted influence through aid and investments, while the United States is increasing engagement to bolster its “free and open” Indo-Pacific vision.

The Sept. 9 presidential election comes at a time when growing concerns over the country’s ballooning foreign debt and domestic issues—including high cost of living, extremism, and corruption—are emerging as key agendas. While this year’s presidential candidates have addressed many of those issues in their election manifestos, analysts said that not all have concrete plans to fulfill them.

At 44, Labeeb is the youngest presidential candidate of an even younger party, the Democrats, which was only formed in May. He said he has plans to tackle the country’s growing problems by tapping into the younger demographic to realize his vision. About 57 percent of Maldivians are between the ages of 18 and 44, and Labeeb believes that he brings “new energy” to a campaign crowded with candidates already tested by the people.

The party that he represents, the Democrats, is a breakaway faction of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), which was founded in exile during the country’s dictatorship and led the pro-democracy movement to win the 2008 and 2018 elections. The Democrats are mostly formed by loyalists of former President Mohamed Nasheed, who quit the party he co-founded and now faces allegations of backsliding on some of the democratic values it once stood for.

Nasheed, who survived life-threatening injuries after a bomb attack in May 2021 that police blamed on “religious extremists”—while one suspect was convicted and sentenced to 23 years in prison, eight others are still awaiting trial—said that leaving MDP was the “best course of action.” His opponents, however, argue that he did so after losing MDP’s presidential primaries to incumbent President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.

In a country of just over half a million people, politics has a particularly intimate tone. Nasheed has accused Solih, his close friend, of failing to effectively address issues such as corruption and religious extremism. Many close to Nasheed, who switched allegiances from MDP for the Democrats, hold similar beliefs.

“We supported MDP because of its principles and democratic values,” said Labeeb, who joined the party during its early election years in 2008. “But everything has changed, and we thought it was the time to form a new party with the same values and principles.”

Solih’s resounding victory in 2018 was heralded as a return of democracy to the Maldives after the autocratic five-year reign of President Abdulla Yameen of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), who crushed dissent and sought to intimidate the media. Yameen is now serving an 11-year prison sentence after being sentenced for corruption and money laundering charges in 2022.?

So when Solih defeated Yameen in 2018, he said it would bring a “just and peaceful society” in the Maldives and called it a “moment of hope.” And despite being called out for nepotism—he is accused of appointing relatives as envoys and top officials—early on in the presidency, Solih’s supporters have widely commended his reforms.

Yet Ibrahim Maahil Mohamed, a journalist at the social media news platform Sosal, said people were divided over Solih’s presidency. While his administration’s infrastructure projects, including water and sanitation projects on almost all islands regardless of the population size, have been seen favorably, corruption scandals during the COVID-19 pandemic and recent tax hikes could prove costly for Solih’s possible second term. However, the Solih administration’s recent decision to grant thousands of land plots to residents of an overcrowded Malé, gripped by a housing crisis, could be a game-changer for his campaign.

“People of Malé have a big desire to own a house,” Mohamed told Foreign Policy. The “Solih government has scored a huge point. The capital has some 54,000 registered voters, so that could be a large chunk of votes.”

Meanwhile, corruption watchdogs have raised red flags. In a statement on Aug. 21, the nongovernmental organization Transparency Maldives said it was “concerning” that the MDP was announcing and inaugurating multiple projects during campaign visits. The organizations said that it “raises grave concerns regarding the level playing field for presidential candidates.”

“Moreover, carrying out official responsibilities while on campaign trips is an abuse of office and related powers, which blurs the line between the official responsibilities of the incumbent and the candidate’s campaign,” the statement said.

Anas Abdul Sattar, an MDP spokesperson, told Foreign Policy that the party denies such claims, adding that all projects were approved and scheduled by the People’s Majlis, the country’s legislative body, when it passed the 2023 budget.

“They are in no way [an] influence to the voters,” he said. “We vehemently deny use of any undue influence as ruling party.”

Meanwhile, for many Solih supporters, the government’s achievements, and the change in their everyday lives, outweigh criticisms.

Mohamed Yazudan, a first-time voter in the presidential election, told Foreign Policy that the MDP government has been involved in the construction of harbor and housing projects, as well as providing funding for students, in several places, including his home island in the Ari Atoll, about a 30-minute flight from Malé. During the initial months of COVID-19, he said that the government also provided financial assistance to those who had lost their livelihoods as an immediate relief. His father, a fisherman, also received a 5,000 rufiyaa ($325) monthly allowance after he could not cater to resorts, which were shut down due to the outbreak.

Asked about the Democrats, who are vying for young voters such as Yazudan, he said the party is “a part of MDP, but with different views.” He added that the party is relatively new, and noted that he doesn’t know much about their achievements so far.

“I just hope that the current president wins,” Yazudan said. “It will benefit a lot of people if they give him the next five years and hope things might change for the better. Even if others win, the actual development shouldn’t just be in Greater Malé but in other islands, too.”

Maldives has its highest-ever number of candidates contesting for the presidential election—five of them from various parties and three independent candidates, including a husband-wife duo for president and vice president, respectively. Many of them are names already familiar to Maldivians—they either have connections to former leaders or have served in previous cabinets. Malé Mayor Mohamed Muizzu is representing the People’s National Congress and is backed by the PPM, as Yameen was barred from the election, while a former minister and son of ex-leader Gayoom, Ahmed Faris Maumoon, is running independently.

Analysts said that fractures in the MDP and PPM—two of the largest political parties in the Maldives—have provided an opportunity for smaller parties to join in the election race. Both parties have been scrutinized for contributing to the expanding foreign debt—the Yameen government’s pro-China infrastructure spree amassed more than $1 billion in debt, while Solih’s “India First” policy secured COVID-19 assistance and a $100 million credit line from its close neighbor. New parties, such as the Democrats, have said they plan to balance bilateral ties, which will be an important factor in debt restructuring in the upcoming budgets.

“The Democrats are a direct challenge for the present MDP leadership … it may split the vote base of MDP and weaken the prospects of MDP in upcoming elections,” Samatha Mallempati, a New Delhi-based political analyst, told Foreign Policy. “The noncontroversial candidate of the party may appeal to the youth of Maldives and for those who are willing to give a chance to young leadership at the helm of government. It may cut into the vote base of MDP and will try to appeal to the youth across party lines looking for a new leadership to lead the country.”

And Labeeb is trying to tap into that demographic in his campaigns and election manifesto. Using his personal success story as an anecdote, he aims to focus on empowering young graduates to become entrepreneurs and promote small- and medium-sized businesses that would benefit individuals, communities, and the country’s economy.

“We have a strong young generation interested in business using technology,” Labeeb said. “We are trying to finance and empower them. They want someone to transform the way they build this nation and their business.”

Labeeb’s youthful appeal and promises have attracted voters such as Mariyam Mayan Mohamed, who switched allegiance from MDP to the Democrats. She said she quit MDP membership in 2020 following the corruption scandals, which seemed like a “continuation of Yameen’s presidency.” She said Labeeb’s experience as a lawmaker and his role in various state committees already establish him as a prospective leader.

“Labeeb is a clean sheet,” she said. “He has stood up and spoken against things that are meaningful for the future. If they get a chance, the Democrats will be one of the parties to lead the Maldives. For now, it’s just not big enough to show the way.”

But it’s not just the party size that poses a potential challenge to the Democrats. Though the party is engaging younger voters, Ibrahim Maahil Mohamed, the journalist, said it could be difficult to engage a demographic that is disengaged and cynical about politics.

Former President Nasheed’s involvement in the campaign—he’s backing and campaigning for the Democrats—could also backfire. Mohamed said that Nasheed, who is also the speaker of the parliament, has been accused by his opponents of disrupting parliamentary sessions and trying to quash a no-confidence motion against him. Some voters have also been roiled by Nasheed calling on a European Union election observation delegation to transfer jailed leader Yameen from prison to house arrest.

“Nasheed is probably weighing his options,” Mallempati said, adding that Nasheed’s support to Yameen indicates the Democrats’ willingness to work with the PPM in the future, if needed, despite putting up their own candidate. “Presidential elections will give a clear picture for the future of the party under his leadership. The parliamentary elections next year are also another opportunity for him to mobilize the public in support of the Democrats.”

For now, the Democrats and their supporters are mobilizing their strengths, including the party’s young candidate. Ibrahim Maahil Mohamed said that the new party has “quite a hopeful future but has a lot of work to do to get to that momentum,” a sentiment with which some of its supporters agree.

But Labeeb said he is determined to win, though he acknowledged that it will be a tough race and that none of the parties may secure more than 50 percent support, which is required to lead the government, in the first round. While campaigning, he said he was excited by the new wave of enthusiasm for the possibility of a new leadership, similar to when the Maldives was transitioning from a dictatorship to democracy.

“People are fed up with the current government,” he said. “They want a new leader, new energy, someone who can listen to and trust. They know I’m capable and have confidence in me. We have a vision and within the next two presidential terms, I’m going to lead this country from a developing to a developed country.”