By Andrew M. Mwenda What Uganda needs to change is not just a political party; it needs a social movement whose organisation starts from the village. This has been the most peaceful campaign in Uganda ever but equally the most expensive in our history. President Yoweri Museveni requisitioned for Shs600 …

By Andrew M. Mwenda and melina platas Election issues, trends, numbers In the heat of the midday sun, a tall young man holds two bundles of shoes in the middle of the street in Mbarara town in western Uganda. Around him is a crowd of other youths; all in their …

By rukiya makuma On Friday Feb. 11, history was made in terms of elections for a political office in Uganda. One of the most successful innovations was the first ever live debate broadcast on television, radio and live-streamed on the internet. The hotly contested Kampala Mayor race was the guinea …

By Dicta Asiimwe Forget the Kabaka, just look at the money The relationship between President Yoweri Museveni and the King of Buganda, Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi is fated to be acrimonious. What else could have led Museveni to be campaigning in the controversial district of Kayunga on Feb.2, just a …

By Eriasa Mukiibi Sserunjogi Campaigns on vote-rigging, ethnicity President Yoweri Museveni’s traditional political stronghold, western Uganda looks like the wrong place for an opposition candidate to spend two precious weeks at the end of an election campaign. But the Interparty Cooperation (IPC) candidate, Kizza Besigye took the gamble on Feb.2 …

By Eriasa Sserunjogi Mukiibi A possible referendum on the future of opinion polling in Uganda? On the morning of Feb. 8, Ofwono Opondo drove from Buliisa district where he says he was doing campaign work to attend the release of the   results of the latest Afrobarometer opinion poll. Upbeat, the …

By Melina Platas Three factors that could determine if Besigye or Museveni wins As ears ring with protests calling for the end of an era, longtime rulers shift uncomfortably. Amidst palpable unease, the run-up to the 2011 elections has been eerily calm. Seasoned analysts debate whether President Yoweri Museveni’s vote …

By Andrew Mwenda Using robust data, it is theoretically possible but realistically improbable Besigye can- not just win, but force Museveni to a second round. On February 18th, Ugandans will go to the polls to elect a new president. All the last three elections have been a two-horse race between …

By Independent Reporter Police chief says he is ready to battle opposition party militias Badru Kiggundu, the soft-spoken Chairman of the Uganda Electoral Commission, knows something about disasters; at least theoretically.  He is a specialist in geotechnical materials and, even as Dean of the Faculty of Technology at Makerere University; …

By Andrew Mwenda Past experiences show that America is willing to countenance democracy only when it produces outcomes favourable to its interests. The current protests in Egypt have placed the United States in a big dilemma. America is a leading advocate of democracy around the world. Yet often times, the …