Counsel Elias Luyimbazi Nalukoola emerged victorious to win the Kawempe North MP seat after defeating nine other contenders in the hotly contested by-election. The seat fell vacant following the death of then MP Muhammad Ssegirinya in January this year.
Nalukoola, a candidate of the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP), garnered 17,764 votes, more than double that of his closest rival, Ms Faridah Nambi of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), with 8593 votes to her name.
In third place was NRM-leaning independent candidate Hanifah Karadi Murerwe with 381 votes, while singer Sadat Mukiibi, alias Kalifa Aganaga, of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) ticket, trailed in fourth with 239 votes.
The other candidates, including Ssegirinya’s former assistant, Muhammad Luswa Luwemba, got 240 votes, People’s Progressive Party(PPP)’s Ismail Musiitwa, garnered 39 votes, Democratic Party (DP)’s Henry Mubiru Kasacca, got 100 votes, and Edward Stanley Engena-Maitum, 22 votes.
Controversial NUP-leaning independent candidate Moses Nsereko got 32 votes, while Muhamood Mutazindwa garnered 186 votes to complete the list.
According to Kampala Electoral District returning officer, Mr Henry Makabayi, a total of 27,596 valid votes were cast, while 28,002 ballot papers were counted. Additionally, 406 ballots were rejected as invalid, and 49 were declared spoilt.
Makabayi also revealed that results from 15 polling stations were not submitted. Six of these stations reported incidents where voting materials, including ballot papers, were allegedly destroyed by unidentified individuals before the tallying process.
Thursday’s by-election was marked by a heavy security deployment and reports of arrests involving journalists, opposition MPs, and their supporters.
