{{Today September 10, Somalia’s parliament is choosing a new president for the war-torn nation in a secret ballot on Monday.
A total of 25 candidates have each paid a $10,000 fee to contest for the top job.}}
Some of the key candidates.
{{SHARIF SHEIKH AHMED}}
President since 2009, the former geography teacher is one of the strongest candidates, despite criticism by many that he has amassed a giant campaign chest through rampant corruption, claims he rejects.
Former Islamist colleagues with the Al-Qaeda linked Shebab insurgents have since vowed to kill the cleric for leading the Western-backed government.
He comes from the town of Jowhar and belongs to the Abgaal branch of the Hawiye clan, a prominent clan in central Somalia and Mogadishu.
{{ABDIWELI MOHAMED ALI}}
Prime minister in the last administration, the US-educated economist hails from the northern Puntland region. He is also seen as another possible winner.
{{ADULLAHI MOHAMED FARMAJO}}
A former prime minister from the Marehan Darod clan in southern Somalia’s Gedo region, Farmajo is reportedly popular on the streets of Mogadishu but is not seen as a likely winner. He was educated in Somalia and the US.
{{ABDULLAHI AHMED ADDOW}}
Former finance minister under toppled dictator Siad Barre and ambassador to the US, Addow hails from southern Somalia and the Habar Gedir sub-clan of the Hawiye.
{{ABDIRAHMAN MOALIM ABDULLAHI BADIYOW}}
A former army colonel and senior leader of the Al-Islah party, Somalia’s Muslim Brotherhood.
{{ABDIWELI ELMI OMAR GONJEH}}
Former deputy prime minister and transport minister in the transitional government, from the Majarteen sub-clan of the Darod.
{{AHMED ISMAIL SAMATAR}}
A formidable academic specialising in international politics and economics, a Fulbright scholar and author of multiple books on Somalia, Samatar took a leave of absence as a professor at Macalester College, in the US state of Minnesota, to contend for the top post.
{{YUSUF GARAD}}
A respected journalist who once worked for Radio Mogadishu, Garad retired as head of the BBC’s Somali service to compete for the presidency.
After a first degree in Mogadishu, he studied in Italy and France, before completing a masters degree in international affairs in the US.
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