Rabat – Yoweri Museveni, the long-time President of Uganda, is likely to run again for a seventh term. This comes as an official from his National Resistance Movement Party, which confirmed that he will receive the national electoral forms on Saturday.
Museveni has been the president of Uganda since taking power in 1986, after a turbulent period following the downfall of Idi Amin. The President is now 80 years old and is running for his seventh term in office.
The NRM has amended the national constitution twice to be able to extend Museveni’s time of office. In 2005, the party removed term limits, and in 2017 removed age restrictions.
President Museveni is now the fifth-longest-serving world leader, and the fourth-longest-serving leader in Africa. He has largely maintained his position through widespread patronage and intimidation of opponents.
During his time in office, Museveni has been accused repeatedly of human rights violations and has led many violent crackdowns on Ugandan democracy.
Tanga Odoi, the chairman of the NRM’s electoral body, stated that “the president will pick up expression of interest forms for two positions, one for chairperson of the party and the other to contest, if he is given the chance as the presidential flag bearer.”
Museveni has recently been cracking down on his electoral opponents, having them arrested and executed. In 2024, Kizza Besigye, a major opponent of the President, was kidnapped in Kenya and is now on death row.
The major opponent in the January elections will be Bobi Wine. On Wednesday, the opposition party, the National Unity Party, said that Wine had “submitted the expression of interests to contest for the President of Uganda.”
Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, is a popular Ugandan singer and pro-democracy activist. He has been a major opponent of Museveni in recent years.
During the 2021 election, Wine came in second place, winning popular support of citizens, especially young people, leading a successful online campaign. After the election, the NUP had criticised the integrity.
Museveni’s heir, his son General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, had recently been reported to have called for Bobi Wine to be beheaded.
These announcements set up the Ugandan elections to be an important electoral rematch for the future of the East African nation’s democracy.
