Uganda Election: Museveni takes early lead with 76.25% as opposition claims fraud

Preliminary results announced by Uganda’s Electoral Commission indicate that President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni is ahead in the presidential election with 76.25% of the vote. He is followed by his main challenger, Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, who has gained 19.85%, while the remaining candidates share the rest of the votes.

The figures were released on Friday after ballots from almost half of the country’s polling stations had been counted, following elections held on January 15, 2026. The Commission started that the results remain provisional as counting continues.

Speaking to journalists after voting, Museveni said he expected to win by close to 80% if the process was free of irregularities. The 81-year-old leader, who has ruled Uganda since 1986, is seeking another five-year term, extending one of Africa’s longest presidencies.

The election has been closely contested against Bobi Wine, a former pop star turned politician, who repeatedly claimed during the campaign that he represented real change and described himself as the true president of Uganda.

According to Reuters, Bobi Wine claimed that the vote was marred by fraud, citing the shutdown of the internet during the election period as a key factor undermining transparency.

He had earlier urged his supporters to remain at polling stations to monitor vote counting and to peacefully protest any irregularities, though no protests had been reported at the time of writing.

On election night, Bobi Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP) party posted on X that security forces had surrounded his home, effectively placing him under house arrest. However, Uganda Police spokesperson Kituuma Rusoke told the Media that he was not aware of any such detention.

As counting continues, both domestic and international observers are watching closely amid heightened political tensions and competing claims over the credibility of the electoral process.