Ugandan Opposition Leader Bobi Wine Rejects Preliminary Presidential Election Results

Opposition leader Bobi Wine has dismissed the preliminary results announced by Election Commissioner chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama, saying he has no authority to release such figures. This comes as vote tallying continues following the recent Ugandan elections. In a social media post, Wine claimed that the Election Commissioner chairperson could not explain the source of the results, describing it as an attempt to mislead the public. "Ignore the 'fake' results being announced by Simon Byabakama. He can't tell anybody where those results are coming from," he posted in X. He emphasised that the people of Uganda will have the final say in the 2026 presidential election, asserting that only officially verified results from accredited polling and tallying processes can determine the outcome. "Our agents at the tally centre are asking him for the source of these results, and the regime enabler can't say a thing," he continued. Meanwhile, Bobi Wine also alleged the deployment of security forces around his home following his participation in the elections. He said his movements were limited in and out of his compound. “Yesterday, after casting my ballot, the military deployed all around my home in order to place me under house arrest. They even jumped over the fence and entered our compound,” he stated. In the post, he said the measures appeared to be motivated by concerns over public reactions, describing the situation as a “siege” of his residence. The ongoing vote count, as of 2:00 PM, covers 30,138 polling stations, with a total of 6,830,089 valid votes tallied. The figures show President Yoweri Museveni leading with 5,148,845 votes (75.38 per cent), while opposition leader Bobi Wine holds 1,414,619 votes (20.71 per cent). Other candidates remain in single-digit percentages. Frank Bulira has 29,713 votes (0.44%), Robert Kasibante 20,626 votes (0.30%), Joseph Mabirizi 14,106 votes (0.21%), Mugisha Muntu 38,582 votes (0.56%), Mubarak Munyagwa 19,034 votes (0.28%), and Nandala Mafabi 144,564 votes (2.12%).