Recent Maldivian Elections... And the Unexpected Result

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So recently presidential elections were held in the island country of Maldives. A small archipelago of islands sitting at a strategical flashpoint in the Indian Ocean and also a scenic tourist destination. Abdulla Yameen the incumbent president was widely considered to win the elections as he had already muzzled the press and all his opponents were exiled or in prison. The neutral observers were also given limited access and it was widely considered that it was a rigged election. Yameen had exiled the ex-president Nasheed who is currently in Sri Lanka under political asylum and made sure that he is not allowed to contest the elections. Hence to counter this all the opposition parties floated a common candidate Mohamed Solih who unexpectedly garnered 58% votes in his favor whereas Yameen got only 41%. However Yameen has not yet committed to handing over of the government to the president elect and the international community is urging him to do so fair and square. As Maldives in strategically located in the Indian Ocean and China has fully backed Yameen in all his endeavors as president it will be interesting to see how things pan out now after the new regime takes over which is considered to be pro-India, the question remains - if the new regime takes over.