Irro, of the Waddani party, who also served as speaker of the House of Representatives of Somaliland's lower chamber of parliament for more than 11 years, said he would resume talks with Somalia.
"It was not our choice to talk to Somalia because our goal has always been getting recognition, but the international community urged us to talk. If I am elected, I will resume the talks if the Somaliland interest lies there, and [at] the same time we will review the previous failed talks," said Irro.
Warabe, of the Justice and Development Party, said that if elected, he would seek recognition through the establishment of a national unity government in Somaliland.
"The return of Bihi [Abdi], who has been for seven years in power, and his party, which has been in power since 2010, is not [an] option for Somaliland voters," Warabe said. "If I am elected, I will lead Somaliland to recognition and [a] more prosperous road."
Regional tension
Somaliland's Wednesday vote comes at a time when tensions remain high between Somalia and Ethiopia over the controversial Memorandum of Understanding that Ethiopia signed with Somaliland.
The deal would grant Ethiopia a 50-year lease of access to 20 kilometres of the Red Sea coastline in exchange for the potential recognition of Somaliland's independence, which Somalia views as a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The deal signed on January 1 in Addis Ababa by Abdi and Ethiopia Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sparked anger in Mogadishu, which considers Somaliland as part of its national territory. The opposition to the deal plunged the two neighbouring countries into a deadlocked situation.
In April, Somalia expelled Ethiopian Ambassador Muktar Mohamed Ware, alleging "internal interference" by Ethiopia. Somalia also ordered the closure of Ethiopia's consulates in Somaliland and Puntland, although they remained open.
Last month, Somalia expelled Mogadishu-based Ethiopian diplomat Ali Mohamed Adan, who was a counsellor at Ethiopia's embassy in Mogadishu.
In July and August 2024, two rounds of talks between Ethiopia and Somalia, mediated by Turkey, failed to solve the dispute, with Somalia demanding Ethiopia withdraw from the deal and Ethiopia insisting that it does not infringe on Somalia's sovereignty.
On Saturday, Somali Defense Minister Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur repeated the Somali government's position against Ethiopian troop involvement in a new African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia starting in January.
"I can say that Ethiopia is the only government we know of so far that will not participate in the new AU mission because it has violated our sovereignty and national unity," Nur said Saturday in a government-run television interview.
Somaliland's last presidential elections were held in 2017. The current presidential election was originally set to take place in 2022 but was postponed until 2023 and then again pushed back to November 2024, following a controversial extension of Abdi's mandate by the parliament's upper house.
The Somaliland National Election Commission, or NEC, said at the time that the delays were due to "time, technical and financial constraints." Opposition parties vehemently denounced the delays.
The president is directly elected for a maximum of two five-year terms and appoints the Cabinet.