Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni wins seventh term: Electoral Commission

Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has been re-elected to a seventh term, the country’s electoral commission has announced.

Museveni, 81, won with 71.65 percent of the vote, the commission said on Saturday.

He defeated his main challenger, 43-year-old Bobi Wine, who received 24.72 percent of the vote, according to the official results.

Museveni’s widely expected victory comes after an election campaign that the United Nations said was marred by “widespread repression and intimidation”, including a crackdown on opposition rallies.

Thursday’s election also unfolded amid a nationwide internet blackout that drew widespread criticism.

Bobi Wine, a singer-turned-politician whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, had claimed on social media on Election Day that “massive ballot stuffing” was also taking place.

Bobi Wine said earlier on Saturday that he had escaped a police and army raid on his house.

“Currently, I am not at home, although my wife and other family members remain under house arrest. I know that these criminals are looking for me everywhere, and I am trying my best to keep safe,” he said.

Museveni, who has been in power since 1986, has been accused of overseeing a years-long crackdown on his political opponents.

He said in the run-up to this week’s vote that he expected to easily win re-election with about 80 percent support.

‘Intimidation, arrests, abductions’

Election observers said on Saturday they saw no evidence of ballot stuffing but denounced “reports of intimidation, arrest and abductions” targeting the opposition and civil society.

That “instilled fear and eroded public trust in the electoral process”, said former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, who was representing election observers from the African Union and other regional bodies.

Jonathan told reporters that the internet shutdown “disrupted effective observation” of this week’s vote and “increased suspicion” but that the overall conduct of the polls on Election Day was “peaceful”.

The AFP news agency reported a heavy police presence around the capital, Kampala, on Saturday, as the authorities have sought to prevent any possible protests.

The Ugandan opposition said at least 10 people were killed by police in an attack on a local opposition lawmaker’s home in the town of Butambala, about 55km (35 miles) southwest of Kampala.

Local authorities put the death toll at seven, with police alleging that machete-wielding opposition “goons” attacked a police station and vote-tallying centre.

During this campaign, Wine’s rallies were repeatedly interrupted by security forces firing tear gas and bullets. At least one person was killed in the violence and hundreds of opposition supporters were arrested.

Museveni’s victory was long viewed as a formality, as the former rebel fighter has total control over the state and security apparatus.

Since taking office four decades ago, he has changed the constitution twice to remove age and term limits.