Uganda’s Fraudulent Election

Issue Date April 2021
Volume 32
Issue 2
Page Numbers 90–104
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In January 2021, Uganda’s president and ruling party were returned to power in an election that was the most violent and least fair in the country’s history. The electoral performance of the opposition nevertheless exposed significant weaknesses in the regime’s grip on power and demonstrated its lack of support and legitimacy among Uganda’s large urban youth population. This article analyzes the fraudulent tactics employed in the election. It argues that Uganda is likely to witness an increasingly bitter and brutal contest between the militarist regime and the citizenry, and that the country’s militarized politics calls into question a donor model that prioritizes security over democracy.

About the Authors

Rita Abrahamsen

Rita Abrahamsen is professor in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs and director of the Centre for International Policy Studies at the University of Ottawa. She is currently senior research fellow at the Centre for Global Cooperation Research at Duisburg-Essen University.

View all work by Rita Abrahamsen

Gerald Bareebe

Gerald Bareebe is assistant professor of politics at York University, and is currently based in Kampala.

View all work by Gerald Bareebe