2026 Ugandan general election

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2026 Ugandan general election
Flag of Uganda.svg
  2021 12 January 2026
Registered18,103,603 [1]
  Museveni July 2012 Cropped.jpg Bobi Wine 2024.png
Candidate Yoweri Museveni Bobi Wine
Party National Resistance Movement National Unity Platform

Incumbent President

Yoweri Museveni
NRM



General elections are scheduled to be held in Uganda on 12 January 2026. [2]

Contents

Electoral system

The president of Uganda is elected using the two-round system, with candidates needing to receive at least 50% of the vote to be elected in the first round. Chapter 142 of the Presidential Elections Act of 2000 stipulates that presidential candidates must be a citizen of Uganda by birth and be qualified to be an MP. [3] Candidates are also required to be of sound mind and have no formal connection with the Electoral Commission of Uganda. Term limits were abolished in 2005. [4] The elections are supervised by the Electoral Commission of Uganda. [5]

The Parliament of Uganda has a total of 529 seats, including 353 representatives elected using first-past-the-post voting in single winner constituencies. Using the same method, 146 seats reserved for women are filled, with one seat per district. Finally, 30 seats are indirectly filled via special electoral colleges: 10 by the army, 5 by youths, 5 by elders, 5 by unions, and 5 by people with disabilities. In each of these groups, at least one woman must be elected (at least two for the army group). [6] [7] [8]

Candidates

In June 2025, incumbent president Yoweri Museveni, who has been in office since 1986, announced his candidacy for another presidential term. [9] He was formally declared the candidate of his party, the National Resistance Movement the following month [10] and was recognised by the election commission on 23 September 2025. [11]

On 18 August 2025, the National Unity Platform (NUP) and the Democratic Party (DP) applied to register candidates for the presidential election. [12] On 24 September, the electoral commission allowed Bobi Wine to run for president. [13]

References

  1. "2025/2026 General Elections". Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 2024-08-14. Retrieved 2025-10-05.
  2. "Uganda's electoral body announces date for presidential, parliamentary polls in 2026". Xinhua News Agency . 1 August 2024. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
  3. "Presidential Electons [sic] Act 2000 | Uganda Legal Information Institute". ulii.org. Archived from the original on 2020-11-15. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  4. Goitom, Hanibal (2012-04-25). "Uganda: Proposal to Re-Introduce Presidential Term Limits | Global Legal Monitor". www.loc.gov. Archived from the original on 2019-09-07. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  5. "IFES Election Guide | Elections: Uganda President 2016". www.electionguide.org. Archived from the original on 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2020-09-18.
  6. "Constitution" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-09-18. Retrieved 2021-01-13.
  7. "Electoral handbook" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-11-29. Retrieved 2021-01-13.
  8. "IFES Election Guide | Elections: Uganda National Assembly 2021". IFES. Archived from the original on 2021-01-22. Retrieved 2021-01-14.
  9. "Uganda: President Museveni, in power since 1986, will be a candidate for re-election". Radio France International. 24 June 2025. Retrieved 24 June 2025.
  10. "Uganda's 80-year-old president in bid to extend 40-year rule". BBC. 6 July 2025. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
  11. "Uganda's authoritarian president, in power since 1986, is running for reelection". AP News. 23 September 2025. Retrieved 23 September 2025.
  12. "Uganda's 2026 presidential race heats up". Africanews. 20 August 2025. Retrieved 20 August 2025.
  13. "Uganda clears Museveni and Bobi Wine to face off in 2026 presidential election". Africanews. 25 September 2025. Retrieved 25 September 2025.