Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has confirmed that he will contest the January 2026 elections, setting the stage for yet another bid to extend his rule that began in 1986.
The country’s electoral commission announced on Tuesday that the 81-year-old leader would appear on the ballot, a decision welcomed by his National Resistance Movement party, which endorsed him earlier in June as its flagbearer.
Museveni, who has already served six terms, is now seeking to stretch his leadership into a fifth decade.
In a message to his supporters on X, Museveni highlighted his economic record, noting that Uganda’s GDP has doubled from US$34 billion to US$66 billion in recent years. He pledged to transform the country into a US$500 billion economy within five years.
“You have everything today that you lacked in the past: electricity, roads, telephones, manpower, the educated people, and peace,” he wrote, insisting that Uganda’s stability has made it attractive to foreign investors.
Related Stories
Museveni also outlined key priorities for the next five years, focusing on wealth creation, free education in government schools, improved infrastructure, healthcare, clean water, and tackling corruption.
Museveni first took power after leading a guerrilla war that ousted General Tito Okello in 1986. Since then, he has maintained a firm grip on Ugandan politics, winning multiple elections often marred by allegations of fraud and intimidation.
In 2017, lawmakers scrapped the constitutional age limit for presidential candidates, clearing the path for Museveni to run beyond the age of 75. While he has at times suggested his next campaign would be his last, he has repeatedly returned to the ballot.
His main rival in 2026 is expected to be Robert Kyagulanyi, better known as Bobi Wine, a former pop star who now leads the National Unity Platform (NUP). Wine’s 2021 performance, where he garnered 35 percent of the vote against Museveni’s 58 percent, marked the strongest challenge yet to the incumbent.
Wine draws significant support from Uganda’s urban poor and the youth, many of whom are demanding change after nearly 40 years under Museveni.
Meanwhile, opposition figures face mounting pressure. Veteran challenger Kizza Besigye remains jailed on treason charges after nine months, a development rights groups say reflects a broader clampdown on dissent ahead of the polls.
Leave Comments