Ex-LOP Mpuuga challenges 2026 general elections in Constitutional Court

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Barely three months after the January 15 general elections, former Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Mathias Mpuuga, has petitioned the Constitutional Court seeking, among others, a declaration that the 2026 general elections were not held in conformity with the Constitution.

Mpuuga filed the petition together with his political party, the Democratic Front (DF), and Dr Abed Bwanika, the outgoing Kimanya-Kabonera MP.

The Attorney General and the Electoral Commission (EC) are the respondents in the matter, which Mpuuga and Bwanika have since lodged at the Constitutional Court.

Mpuuga and Bwanika, among others, formed DF after breaking away from the National Unity Platform (NUP) following a controversial sh500 million service award.

In their petition, the duo argues that the EC not only violated Article 63(5) of the Constitution but also caused injustice when it organised the 2026 parliamentary elections without first reviewing the re-demarcation of the parliamentary constituencies within twelve months after the publication of the results of the population census.

They argue that this affected citizens’ rights to effective representation in Parliament based on a population quota.

They further claim that the failure by the EC to re-demarcate or subdivide parliamentary constituencies, particularly in Kampala, Mukono, Wakiso and other highly populated areas across the country, contravened Articles 1, 2, 29, 41, 43, 44, 45, 59, 61, 63(5) and 68 of the Constitution.

They are also seeking a declaration that by procuring and deploying the Biometric Voter Verification Kits (BVVK) without an enabling law, the EC violated Articles 1, 2, 29, 41, 59, 61, 63(5), 68 and 79 of the Constitution.

They further contend that by changing the dates for updating the national voters register from January 3, 2025 to January 24, 2025 without adequate explanation, the EC acted contrary to Articles 59, 61 and 68 of the Constitution, which require elections to be conducted on the basis of a credible, transparent and verifiable voters’ register through a constitutionally compliant process.

They argue that while the EC projected that about five million new voters would be registered during the update exercise, it publicly admitted that the process was severely hampered by reliance on a limited number of old and malfunctioning biometric registration kits obtained from the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA).

They also fault the EC for the rotational deployment of the biometric kits and frequent breakdowns, which led to long queues that allegedly prevented many registered voters from voting.

Mpuuga and Bwanika also question the 3.5 million voters added to the voters register and want the court to declare that the alleged unexplained expansion of the national voters register is contrary to Articles 1, 59, 61, 63 and 68 of the Constitution.

They further seek a declaration that requiring candidates sponsored by political parties to submit signatures to participate in an election offends Articles 71(a), 72 and 73 of the Constitution.

They want the court to declare Section 10(1)(a) and (b) of the Presidential Elections Act, Section 11(1)(c) of the Parliamentary Elections Act and Section 119 of the Local Government Act unconstitutional.

Mpuuga and Bwanika also contend that members of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) conducted themselves contrary to their constitutional mandate under Articles 208 and 209 during the recent general elections, thereby affecting the EC’s mandate of organising free and fair elections.

They also accuse the EC of declaring results without verification and harmonisation, which they argue is inconsistent with Articles 61(d) and 62 of the Constitution.

Following their departure from NUP, Mpuuga and Bwanika argued that their party was illegally denied funds by the Inter-Party Organisation for Dialogue (IPOD).

Reliefs sought

• An order directing the EC to forthwith and before the next general elections re-demarcate parliamentary constituencies in accordance with Article 63(5) of the Constitution.

• An order directing Parliament to enact an enabling law providing for the use of Biometric Voter Verification Kits (BVVK) technology.

• An order directing forensic verification of the national voters register and presidential transmission process under the supervision of the court.

• An order staying any further electoral process based on the said voters' register until full constitutional compliance is demonstrated.

• An order directing that any provisions requiring candidates sponsored by registered political parties to submit signatures in any number or form for nomination be expunged from the country’s electoral laws.

• An order restraining members of the UPDF and Resident District Commissioners from any further interference in the electoral process.

• An order stopping the EC from any future declaration of presidential and parliamentary election results at the national tally centre without prior harmonisation and verification by agents of participating candidates.

• An order directing the EC to implement the High Court directive for prisoners and Ugandans living in the diaspora to vote by registering them.

• An order directing the EC to recognise DF as a party in the 11th Parliament and grant it all its entitlements.

• An order directing the EC to distribute political party funds released for the previous elections equally among political parties.

• An order for the costs of the petition.