Vote count under way in Ethiopia after contentious election

Ballot papers are still being counted following delayed parliamentary elections in Ethiopia, the first electoral test for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

Africa’s second-most populous country went to the polls on Monday but an opposition boycott, a months-long war in the northern region of Tigray, ethnic violence elsewhere and logistical challenges overshadowed the vote in some regions.

Abiy’s newly formed Prosperity Party (PP) is seen as the frontrunner in a crowded field of candidates, mostly from smaller, ethnically-based parties.

The vote was seen as a crucial test for the prime minister, whose rise to power in 2018 initially seemed to signal a break with decades of authoritarian rule, but who has since waged war in the Tigray region and whose party has been accused of election abuses.

More than 37 million of Ethiopia’s 109 million people were registered to vote, choosing from 46 parties and more than 9 000 candidates – a record, according to the electoral board. But some prominent opposition parties, notably in the country’s most populous region, Oromia, boycotted the election citing intimidation and imprisonment of some of their leaders and supporters. “Abiy is desperate to get a popular mandate because this country is riddled with so many problems – from the conflict in Tigray to ethnic troubles in several hotspots,” Al Jazeera’s Mohamed Adow, reporting from the capital, Addis Ababa, said yesterday.

“Many of his supporters and people in his party believe that with a popular mandate he will have the legitimacy he needs to deal decisively with Ethiopia’s problems,” he added.

Some polling stations have started posting results. Preliminary results are expected within five days, and final ones within two weeks.

“In most polling stations across the country, Abiy’s Prosperity Party is leading,” Adow said. “But the opposition is making headways in areas like the capital and towns in other parts of the country and they seem happy with that,” he added.

“There have been problems with the process and opposition parties in rural areas have filed hundreds of complaints including some about tampering with electoral material. The electoral commission says it is investigating those allegations.”

Election board chief Birtukan Midekssa said authorities were unable to hold elections in four of Ethiopia’s 10 regions. In two of the regions that did vote, opposition observers were reportedly chased away from many polling stations, she said.

“This will jeopardise the credibility of the election process,” Midekssa warned.

Voting was delayed in different areas for different reasons.

Voters in Ethiopia’s Sidama state had a second chance to cast ballots on Tuesday after officials there ran out of voting papers the day earlier. The second day of voting in Sidama started at 11am (08:00 GMT).

Voting was also not held in some parts of the Benishangul-Gumuz region after ethnic violence prevented voter registration.-Al Jazeera.