By KT Reporter
Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) presidential candidate Nathan Nandala Mafabi has rejected the outcome of Uganda’s 2026 presidential elections held on January 15, 2026, describing the process as fraudulent and calling for the immediate resignation of the Justice Simon Byabakama–led Electoral Commission.
Mafabi was addressing a press conference in Mbale City alongside FDC president Patrick Amuriat Oboi, Jack Sabiiti, and other party officials and former candidates, where he said the presidential, parliamentary, and local government elections did not reflect the will of the Ugandan people.
“The just concluded presidential and parliamentary elections in Uganda were just a ritual to legitimize the incumbent Yoweri Kaguta Museveni’s overstay and purposely justify his 7th term at the helm of the leadership of Uganda,” Mafabi said in a statement read to the media. According to results announced by the Electoral Commission, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) was declared the winner with 7,944,772 votes (71.65 per cent).
The National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, secured 2,741,238 votes (24.72 per cent), while Mafabi garnered 209,039 votes (1.88 per cent). Mafabi said the figures were the outcome of an electoral process characterised by violence, intimidation, and manipulation. “We are concerned about the post-election violence which has led to countless deaths of opposition supporters, dozens of opposition supporters from FDC and other formations arrested nationwide, and security forces deployed in opposition strongholds, using tear gas and live bullets to disperse protesters,” he said.
He accused security agencies and the Electoral Commission of colluding in ballot stuffing and falsification of results at polling stations and tally centres across the country, and alleged that youth skilling hubs were used as ballot pre-ticking centres, particularly in opposition-leaning areas such as Soroti and Mbale cities. Mafabi further criticised the shutdown of the internet and mobile money services ahead of polling day, saying it disrupted opposition coordination and election operations.
“The internet was shut down… intended to deny information to the masses and to slow down our communication capabilities with our colleagues in the field,” he said. He said the malfunctioning of biometric voter verification machines delayed voting in many polling stations, forcing some voters to leave without casting their ballots. “This was a premeditated and organized way of disenfranchisement of voters, and many voters, out of frustrations, went away without voting,” Mafabi said.
The Electoral Commission put voter turnout at 52.5 per cent, with 11,366,201 Ugandans casting ballots, leaving more than 10 million registered voters who did not vote, according to figures cited by FDC. Mafabi said FDC rejects the presidential election results in totality and is demanding sweeping electoral reforms. “FDC rejects the outcome of the presidential elections in totality as these were flawed and didn’t reflect the genuine will of the Ugandan people,” he said, calling for the resignation and reconstitution of the Electoral Commission.
He said the party will support parliamentary and local government candidates who file court petitions once the election gazette is published and welcomed concerns raised by the African Union observer mission, which questioned the fairness of the elections, citing internet shutdowns, arrests of opposition supporters, and deployment of military personnel during the election period. “The struggle for a free, fair, and democratic Uganda will continue without reservations,” Mafabi said.
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