# Hassan Sheikh Mohamud Elected President (2012)

URL: https://allhistories.com/somalia/timeline/2012-hassan-sheikh-mohamud-elected-president
Location: Mogadishu, Banadir, Somalia
Themes: ruler-change

Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, born in 1955 in Jalalaqsi, was an educationalist who had worked for UNICEF and co-founded the SIMAD institute, later a university, in Mogadishu. He founded the Peace and Development Party in 2011 and was seen as a civil-society candidate untainted by the warlord era. On 10 September 2012 the 275 members of the newly sworn-in House of the People voted at the Mogadishu police academy, the first presidential election held inside Somalia in decades. After the first round, Hassan Sheikh defeated the incumbent Sharif Sheikh Ahmed in the run-off by 190 votes to 79, and Sharif conceded gracefully. Two days later the new president survived an attack by suicide bombers on the Jazeera Hotel, where he was meeting the Kenyan foreign minister. His election was welcomed internationally as a fresh start and led to the recognition of the federal government by the United States, the IMF and others in 2013. He served until 2017 and returned to the presidency in 2022, becoming the first Somali president to win two non-consecutive terms. At this point in the timeline (10 September 2012), the Acting President of Somalia was Mohamed Osman Jawari (28 August 2012 – 16 September 2012); the President of Somaliland was Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud Silanyo (27 July 2010 – 13 December 2017). Government: the Prime Minister of Somalia was Abdiweli Mohamed Ali (19 June 2011 – 17 October 2012).

## Why it matters
The election of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud marked the start of the permanent Federal Government of Somalia.

Ruler at the Time: [Mohamed Osman Jawari](https://allhistories.com/somalia/rulers/mohamed-osman-jawari)

President of Somaliland: Ahmed Mohamed Mohamoud Silanyo (Kulmiye)
Prime Minister of Somalia: Abdiweli Mohamed Ali (Independent)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — 2012 Somali presidential election](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_Somali_presidential_election)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica — Hassan Sheikh Mohamud](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Hassan+Sheikh+Mohamud)
- [Wikipedia — Hassan Sheikh Mohamud](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hassan_Sheikh_Mohamud)
- [BBC News — Somalia profile: timeline](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14094632)
- [Wikipedia — The Federal Era And Al-Shabaab (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Government_of_Somalia)