KAMPALA, Uganda — Uganda’s Electoral Commission has announced that long awaited elections for Local Council I (LC I) and Local Council II (LC II) leaders will be held in July and August, ending years of uncertainty following repeated extensions of the terms of current officeholders.
Electoral Commission Chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama Mugenyi unveiled the roadmap on Monday, saying elections for LC I chairpersons will take place on July 28 across the country’s 71,214 villages. Elections for village Women’s Councils and Committees are scheduled for July 23, while LC II chairperson elections at parish level will be held on Aug. 10.
The announcement clears the way for the renewal of Uganda’s grassroots leadership structures, which play a key role in community mobilization, dispute resolution, local security and service delivery.
The current LC I and LC II leaders have remained in office beyond their five year mandate after their terms expired in July 2023. The government extended their tenure six times through statutory instruments issued under the Local Government Act, citing a lack of funding to organize fresh elections.
Uganda last conducted LC I and LC II elections in 2018, ending a 17 year gap since the previous polls in 2001. The repeated extensions since 2023 drew criticism from opposition politicians, governance advocates and legal analysts, who questioned the legitimacy of leaders serving beyond their elected terms.
The Electoral Commission said the election program became possible after the government released about Shs56 billion to finance the exercise. Earlier plans to hold the polls in March and April this year were pushed back because of funding and logistical constraints.
Under the electoral roadmap, recruitment and training of election officials will run from June 22 to July 1. Verification of residents and compilation of village voters registers will take place between July 6 and July 10, followed by public display of the registers on July 13 and 14.
Nomination forms will be issued from July 9 to July 14, while nominations for candidates will be conducted between July 15 and July 19 at sub county, town council and division headquarters. Campaigns will run from July 20 to July 27 and will be restricted to the candidates’ respective villages.
Eligible voters must be Ugandan citizens aged 18 years and above who ordinarily reside in the village where they intend to vote. Registration will be free of charge. Women will be eligible to register on both the general village voters register and the Women’s Council register.
As in previous LC elections, voting for village chairpersons will be conducted using the legally prescribed open queue system, where voters line up behind their preferred candidate, candidate’s agent, portrait or symbol. Results will be declared at the polling station immediately after voting.
The Electoral Commission says each village will serve as its own polling station and voter education activities will be conducted on polling day.
Following the election of village chairpersons, the winners will nominate members of the village executive committee, subject to approval by residents through a show of hands. Representatives of special interest groups, including women, youth, older persons and persons with disabilities, will automatically become members of the executive committee.
At parish level, voter registers will be compiled on July 29 ahead of the LC II elections on Aug. 10. Elections for Women’s Councils will proceed through village, parish, sub county and district levels before culminating in a national conference in September.
The Electoral Commission said no academic qualifications or nomination fees will be required for candidates seeking LC I or Women’s Committee positions, in line with the grassroots nature of the offices. Candidates may contest either as independents or under political party sponsorship.
While the open queue voting system has long been defended as a transparent method for small community elections, critics have previously raised concerns about voter intimidation and social pressure. The commission urged candidates, voters and political actors to conduct themselves peacefully and comply with electoral laws.
The LC I and LC II elections form part of Uganda’s wider 2025-2026 electoral cycle, which includes presidential, parliamentary and local government elections. Observers say the successful conduct of the grassroots polls could strengthen confidence in local governance and provide an early test of the country’s electoral preparedness ahead of the national elections.
