Farmajo congratulates Joe Biden after historic American polls

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Somalia has joined the rest of the world in acknowledging the victory of Joe Biden as the next president of the United States of America, just hours after the former Vice President and Delaware senator was projected as the winner of the closely contested poll.

Biden, 78, was pronounced the winner after winning Pennsylvania, with Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona, and Alaska yet to declare final results. Outgoing President Donald Trump appeared only to be ahead in North Carolina and Alaska but this could not give him the magic 270 electoral college votes.

And on his Twitter account, Farmajo, who was first elected in 2017, joined other world leaders in congratulating Biden and his deputy Kamala Harris for the victory, adding that Somalia is ready to work with the new team which shall assume office on January 20.

"Congratulations President-elect of the United States of America Joe Biden and VP-elect Kamala Harris. Somalia wishes you success in your endeavors," he said. "We look forward to closing cooperation and partnership. The USA is a strong ally and partner in Somalia’s progress and development."

Somalia, which is set to conduct elections from this month, joins bigwigs such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and Israel in acknowledging the victory of the democratic party. Trump has however insisted that the elections were "manipulated" in favor of his opponents.

In his speech, Biden, who will assume office as the oldest ever president, hailed the African Americans and other races for supporting his campaign. Further, he pledged to work for all Americans regardless of their political inclinations.

"Especially for those moments when this campaign was at its lowest — the African American community stood up again for me. They always have my back, and I’ll have yours," he said.

"Tonight, the whole world is watching America. I believe at our best America is a beacon for the globe. And we lead not by the example of our power, but by the power of our example," added the incoming president.

Importantly, Somalis in America performed well in the 2020 elections especially in the state of Minnesota. One of the outstanding performances was that of Minnesota 5th District Representative Ilhan Omar who won her second term on the Democratic Party ticket.

The change of guard in America comes months after it emerged that Trump was planning to withdraw the US army from Somalia. There are close to 600 troops from the US Africa Command in the Horn of Africa nation who have been integral in the fight against Al-Shabaab militants.

GAROWE ONLINE