The Electoral Commission (EC) on Thursday announced presidential aspirants that have already submitted their documents for verification and the polling dates for parliamentary and local government elections in 2021.
According to Justice Simon Byabakama Mugenyi, the chairperson of EC, presidential candidates will be nominated on Monday, November 2, and Tuesday, Nov. 3.
The nomination exercise will be conducted at Kyambogo University Sports Grounds, starting at 9am and ending at 5pm on each of the appointed dates.
“The aspiring candidate shall be allowed into the nomination venue accompanied by not more than ten (10) persons (including the candidate),” the chairperson said.
He also revealed that at least 87 aspirants have collected forms expressing interest to contest for the presidency but it’s also important to note that Section 10(b) of the Presidential Elections Act provides that a presidential candidate’s nomination has to be supported by not less than one hundred (100) persons who are registered voters, from not less than 98 districts, which form two-thirds of all the districts of Uganda.
According to Byabakama, eighteen candidates are currently undergoing verification, with only the incumbent, Yoweri Museveni, having been verified and cleared for nomination.
Elections
Dates for presidential elections have not yet been announced but for local government and parliament, elections will commence on January 1, 2021, beginning with the election of councillors for Older Persons to the sub-county/town/municipal/division and end on Feb. 3 with the election of sub-county/town/municipal/division chairpersons and councillors.
The Electoral Commission conducted the nomination of candidates for local government councils and parliamentary elections, from 21st September to 5th October and on 15th and 16th October 2021, respectively.
The Commission says it is compiling the details of all nominated candidates and will publish the results in due course.
Campaigns will begin on Nov.9 with directly elected MPs on Nov. 9 and end with sub-county/town/municipal chairpersons and councillors on February 1, 2021.
Campaigns shall be conducted between 7am and 6pm.
“Candidates will, however, be allowed to organise/hold campaign meeting in a regulated manner, preferably outdoors, with limited attendance of a maximum of seventy (70) persons, to enable the observance of the 2-meters social distancing rule for the persons attending the meeting,” the EC chairman said.
