The elections were first scheduled to end on 24 December 2021.[3][4][5][6] By 25 December, only 24 of 275 representatives had been elected and the ongoing political crisis further complicated matters.[6] The incumbent president, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, has been in office since the February 2017 election and his term expired on 8 February 2021; however, it was extended until after the elections would be completed.[7] On 10 January 2022, Somali leaders announced they struck a deal to complete presidential and parliamentary elections by 25 February, after repeated delays that have threatened the stability of the country.