Jinja female workers council race ends in rare tie, re-run ordered

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Attempts by the incumbent, Ruth Mubeezi of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), to secure a second term as Jinja district female workers councillor stalled after she tied with her challenger.

The tightly contested race ended with Mubeezi and her rival, Lillian Alum, each securing 68 votes, leaving both candidates and their supporters on edge.

The two candidates Lillian Alum and Ruth Mubeezi (R) who tied with 68 votes for the Jinja distruct female workers seat on Wednesday. (Photo by Jackie Nambogga)

Alex Mukwanga, who presided over the January 21, 2026, exercise at Kagoma town council offices in Jinja district, explained that the possibility of a one-vote victory was ruled out after one ballot paper was invalidated when a voter ticked both candidates.

Alum, a first-time contestant running as an independent, surprised many observers with the level of support she attracted.

Matiya Mulumba, a journalist who covered the polls, described the contest as unprecedented in his experience.

“I have been seeing candidates in tight races winning by one to three votes but not to tie, this is my first time while covering competitive politics,” he said.

Mukwanga also noted that such an outcome was rare for election officials.

“It looked like football in the Premier League between Arsenal and Manchester City when we were tallying the results,” he said.

Mukwanga immediately informed the district returning officer, Sarah Catherine Kabukaire, who said the Electoral Commission would announce a new date for a re-run of the female workers' election.

Alum later expressed frustration over delays in accessing the voters' register, which she said affected her ability to campaign effectively.

She explained that the register was only available on Tuesday (January 20), making it difficult to reach out to voters in time.

“I didn’t know many voters in the register, which frustrated our win, but I am requesting the EC to alert us in advance when they will be fixing the re-run,” Alum said.

Mubeezi, meanwhile, thanked her supporters and urged her opponent to approach the re-run peacefully.

“Let us promote humanity while soliciting for support because the voters are now known,” she said.

In the male workers' council race, Moses Lwokyaza retained his seat after defeating two opponents.

The NRM candidate won by a margin of 10 votes, with his closest challenger, Michael Nadiope, an independent, polling 69 votes, while Forum for Democratic Change candidate Peter Muwaya Kamwami trailed with three votes.

Low turnout

Despite having 276 registered voters, Mukwanga said only 157 turned up to vote.

He noted that the Electoral Commission had also recorded generally low voter turnout during the presidential and parliamentary elections held last week.

Kabukaire said investigations would be conducted to establish the cause of the low participation.

NRM defeated in elderly and youth races

In the elderly category, Rose Kakaire and Dr John Paul Kizito defeated NRM flag bearers in the female and male races, respectively.

Kakaire, a former Jinja district vice chairperson during Fredrick Gume’s tenure, defeated Buwenge Town Council deputy speaker Jamia Lukudhe by 19 votes to 14.

She replaces NRM’s Irene Mawanda, who did not seek another term.

Kizito retained his seat after defeating his brother, James Mugaya, by 20 votes to 13.

Youth races

NRM initially fronted Denis Gulaale as its male youth candidate, but he was later disqualified following a petition challenging his age.

At nomination, he had exceeded the youth age bracket by three days, a decision that cleared the way for Rogers Nkoola of the opposition National Unity Platform to win the seat with 117 votes, defeating Herbert Kivumbi, an NRM-leaning contender, who polled 108 votes.

In the female youth race, NRM’s Peace Kisakye lost to Mercy Namulondo, who secured 158 votes against Kisakye’s 130.