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Friday, February 7, 2025

An interesting case: the elections in Uganda

The population of Uganda is constantly growing, as a comparison if in the ’80s the population of this country was around 10 million, today the population reached around 40 million people. Automatically this involves an increasing number of voters and of course, a bigger administrative effort to organize the elections. According to official data – in the General Elections 2015/2016 there were registered 15.277.198 voters, in 2021 the number is estimated at 19.400.000. The difference can be translated into an increased effort for all the political organizations to grow their network in covering territory and expanding tactical capacity. Given the whole background, the effort was considerably bigger for the opposition parties and the smaller political factions. The campaign has been also marked by waves of fake content, including the usage of images and clips of U.S politicians supporting certain candidates and movements.

President Yoweri Museveni

The 2021 elections represent another stage in a country ruled since 1986 by president Yoweri Museveni and where tensions were high. The opposition`s main challenger for Museveni is Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu also known as Bobi Wine (his stage name as a pop-star). He currently leads the People Power, Our Power movement, rather a pressure group formed against Museveni`s rule.

Robert Kyagulanyi is also known as Bobi Wine

Unfortunately, violence marked the electoral campaign, and fear took its toll. Fear was augmented by the Covid-19 pandemic, which allowed the authorities to reduce some fundamental rights. Repression and the pandemic are two elements that damaged the capacity of opposition parties to carry out the political campaign. Furthermore, we might tend to consider that the authorities considered the People Power, Our Power`s campaign an insurrection and acted accordingly.

Before the elections, the current president was the favorite to win; the final results of the elections confirmed his victory with a percentage of 58.38%. On the other hand, the way in which  Bobi Wine moved during this campaign made a difference and demonstrated a lot of enthusiasm and determination, key elements for any possible presidential candidate. We should also consider his capacity to send messages to the young generation who sought a better future in Uganda. Kyagulanyi managed to mobilize a good part of this electorate and that is great. The political future will surely favor those who better organize (redefining internal priorities and structures of political parties) and those who will have the courage to empower young people.

In a growing democracy such as the Republic of Uganda, voter education should be a priority for all the stakeholders involved. Political parties should closely work with nongovernmental bodies having as target raising public awareness about the importance of voting (especially for the vulnerable sectors of society). Another role might be well played by public schools that could introduce in their curricula courses regarding voter education.

Increasing the spending on future programs promoting democratic concepts, management – both in terms of political management and electoral campaign management. These two types are essential for the future political outlook of the country. Political maturation takes time and can pass through various stages, some of which might be covered in dirt.

Radu Georgescu
Radu Georgescuhttp://linkinpolitics.com
Radu Georgescu served for more than 12 years in the central administration of Romania, he held various positions in the sphere of international affairs and communication. During this time, he worked extensively with different politicians, focusing on speech writing and policy analysis. In 2022, he founded the project Linkinpolitics.com, a website that focuses on topics related to elections, political parties and international relations. Radu holds a Master’s Degree in International Relations from the University of Bucharest and a Bachelor`s Degree in Political Science from the same university. He is a member of the European Association of Political Consultants.

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