President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu attends a rally held by the main ruling PNC on April 20, 2024 in Male' City. (Sun Photo/Moosa Nadheem)

The main ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) has secured a supermajority in the Parliament, winning over 60 seats.

Over 200,000 Maldivians voted in the parliamentary elections held on Sunday, in which 326 candidates contested for 93 seats in the next parliamentary assembly, including six news seats.

The ruling party’s candidates ran for 90 seats. The candidates who ran in the elections also includes 89 candidates from Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP); 39 candidates from the Democrats; 10 candidates from Jumhoory Party (JP); four candidates from Maldives Development Alliance (MDA); four from Adhaalath Party (AP); two from Maldives National Party (MNP); and 130 independent candidates.

The preliminary results show PNC won over 60 seats, which is roughly two-thirds of total seats.

This does not include the independent candidates who contested with the party’s backing, as well as candidates from MNP and MDA – two parties allied with the ruling coalition.

In the 2019 elections, the then-ruling MDP won a supermajority, with 64 seats. Meanwhile, the then-opposition PPM-PNC coalition won just eight.

And in the 2014 elections, the then-ruling PPM won the majority.

The only ruling party which failed to get a majority was MDP, which was during the 2009 elections.