1962 Ugandan general election

General elections were held in Uganda on 25 April 1962 in preparation for independence on 9 October. However, elections were not held in all parts of the country, with the Parliament of Buganda nominating 21 members (all of whom belonged to the Kabaka Yekka party) to the national parliament instead. The result was a victory for the Uganda People's Congress, which won 37 of the 82 seats, ^[1] and went on to form a coalition government with Kabaka Yekka, ^[2] with Milton Obote as Prime Minister. ^{[2] [3]}

Results

The Uganda People's Congress (UPC) secured 37 direct seats, the Democratic Party won 24, while Kabaka Yekka (KY) won all 21 Bugandan seats via nomination.

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Uganda People's Congress	545,324	51.81	37	+2
	Democratic Party	484,933	46.07	24	−19
	Uganda National Congress	2,565	0.24	0	−1
	Bataga Party of Busoga	2,375	0.23	0	New
	Uganda National Union	39	0.00	0	New
	Independents	17,308	1.64	0	−2
Kabaka Yekka				21	New
Total		1,052,544	100.00	82	0
Registered voters/turnout		1,553,233	–
Source: Nohlen et al.

Aftermath

Disputes over the ‘lost counties’ prompted a 1964 referendum, resulting in the transfer of Buyaga and Bugangaizi to Bunyoro and igniting tensions that ultimately fractured the UPC–KY coalition. ^{[4] [5]}

References

1. Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich & Bernhard Thibaut (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p934 ISBN   0-19-829645-2
2. "A Brief History of Elections in Uganda 1958-2021".
3. "An idiot's guide to Uganda's elections". Monitor. 2021-01-14. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
4. "What Uganda has gone through since 1962". Monitor. 2024-10-07. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
5. Reporter, NewVision (2021-10-09). "UG@59: Key events from 1962 to 1973". New Vision. Retrieved 2025-08-12.