Elections in Ethiopia

After assuming power in May 1991, the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) has been taking concrete measures that contribute to the democratization of the nation. It has shouldered the heavy responsibility of ensuring the supremacy of the constitution entrusted on it by the people through the successive multi-party elections. Throughout the elections the degree of involvement of the people and political parties witnessed that pluralism has been truly gaining momentum.

The government and the people, as in the past elections, are pledging their commitment to the advancement of development and democratization of the nation in the upcoming local and by-election the party. To realize this, the party has worked hard to bring about a massive participation in the vetting of candidates to determine the ones genuinely committed to justice, equality, peace, democracy and development. Ensuring the inclusion of women, youth, and the educated as candidates to solve the complex problems of the society was also given attention. The party is at present working carefully to create a favorable atmosphere for the election. The intent is to encourage the involvement of opposition parties to actively engage in the forums created by National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) and others.  .

A glimpse at the past four national elections

(a)  June 1992

            The foundation for multi-party system was laid by the July 1991 conference where 29 national and regional political and armed groups agreed to share the 82 seats in the transitional government. Accordingly, 32 seats went to EPRDF, 12 to Oromo Liberation Front, 3 seats each to Oromo Islamic Liberation, Afar Liberation Front and the Islamic Front Liberation Organization. The rest were taken by the other parties. After almost a year, that is on June 21, 1992, was conducted the first ever multi-party election in the country. This contest was won by EPRDF. The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) boycotted the election.

(b) June 1995

            This was the time were the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) recognized 7 national and 57 regional parties.

            In this election 21,337,379 eligible people were registered and 20,068,508 (94.1%) of them voted. Subsequently, out of the total 546 parliamentary seats EPRDF won 483 seats, the other parties got 53 seats and 10 seats went to independents..

            Although some parties again boycotted this election the voter turnout was impressive, observers rated it as satisfactory and the involvement of opposition parties has also increased, thus demonstrating a real move toward democratization.

(c)  May 2000

            Some 65 political parties, 57 operating at regional level and the remaining 8 at national level took part in this election. Opposition political parties like the AAPO and CAFPDE which boycotted the 1995 election engaged in the election.

            In this election 21,834,806 voters were registered, of which 19,607,614 (89.8%) cast ballots to 35 political parties and many independent candidates.

            The Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) won 481 seats and EPRDF affiliated parties 37. Opposition political parties and independents won 39 seats. All parties involved in the election and the public at large gained a lot of experience from the process and democratic culture was taking root.

(d) May 2005

            In this election were two strikingly contrasting approaches. The ruling party strove for a democratic, free and fair election while the opposition rallied against these vowing to seize power at all costs.

            The total number of registered voters was 25,605,810 that is 13,265,721 male and 12,340,089 female. Voter turn out was close to 22.6 million (88.3%) and the contending parties were 39.

            EPRDF got the majority seats in the councils of the four regional states and in the federal parliament. The opposition won a total of 172 parliamentary seats, many seats in the regions and sweeping victory in Addis Ababa city. Yet the former Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD) party declined to take over the metropolis.

            The debates held at the various forums and the degree of involvement of the masses were impressive and exemplary to the continent, despite the deceitful acts of the opposition.

            Notwithstanding those disruptive acts, the ruling party stood firm in its stand for democracy. This helped in the furtherance of the democratic order. The pardon granted to the CUD leaders who were found guilty of serious offences by court while blindly pursuing their declared objective of seizing power at all costs also demonstrated the commitment of the people and government of Ethiopia to the unhindered flourishing of democracy in the country.

Facts about the upcoming local and by-election

            The people and the country have indeed been marching on the road to democracy and they are going to elect their representatives to the local administrative bodies and fill the vacant seats abandoned by the opposition in the House of Peoples Representatives. Voter registration is finalized and election campaigns are underway. The overall picture of the local and by-election is the following:

Voter registration

-          Around 27 million voters are registered, a marked increase compared to even the hotly contested May 2005 national election.

-          The registration of voters was carried out done in the presence of observers elected by the public.

Contesting party and independent candidates

(a)    To the House of Peoples Representatives (HPR)

Eyeing the 40 vacant seats in the House of Peoples Representatives are 129 candidates from more than 27 different political parties. EPRDF has fielded candidates that run for 38 of those seats in Amhara, Tigray, Oromia, SNNP states, and Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa administrations. Two of the remaining seats where EPRDF does not participate are those of  Gambela and Somalia states..

     Vacant seats in the HPR

-          40 seats are vacant in the federal parliament

-          14 of those are reserved for Addis Ababa

-          12 for Oromia

-          7  for Amhara

-          5 for SNNPS

-          1 for Gambela

-          1 for Somali State (no election to be held now)

Parties contesting nationally

     (b) To regional states and administrations

      Tigray

-          2 seats in the regional council (parliament)

-          11,177  in woreda and town councils

-          166,572  in kebele councils

                   Amhara

-          32 seats in the regional council

-          2,169 in city councils

-          12,439 in woreda councils

-          934,603 in kebele councils

-          22 towns 191 township kebeles

-          128 rural woredas 3185 Kebeles

  SNNP State

-          9 seats in the regional council

-          1,156 in city councils  

-          830 in zonal councils

-          11,563 in woreda councils

-          682,452 in keble councils

Oromia

-          17 seats in the regional council

-          23,724 in town and woreda councils

-          1,770,444 in kebele councils

Dire Dawa Administration

-          114 seats in the town council

-          6,746 in  kebele councils

-          9 in urban kebele councils

-          33 in rural kebele councils

  Addis Ababa Administration

-          138 seats in the City Council

-          2,970 in sub-cities

-          29,700 in kebeles

 EPRDF believes that the upcoming local election and by-election are crucial as the administrations to be created would play pivotal role in advancing the fast growth of the country, in addressing the challenges of good governance, in enhancing the democratization process and in protecting the constitutional rights of nations, nationalities and peoples of Ethiopia.

Therefore the party has fielded around 3.7 million candidates to contest at all levels across the nation. Among those are candidates that compete in the capital city.

The capital city is still being administered by a caretaker administration as the former CUD party declined to take its seats and govern the metropolis. According to the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia, election in the capital city is going to be conducted on April 20, 2008. Some sixteen political parties and independents are running for the seats in the city administration.

Parties contesting in Addis Ababa City Administration

EPRDF has fielded 32,760 candidates in Addis Ababa. Of those, 60% candidates contesting for kebele councils are supporters of the party and so are the other 40 % candidates running for various other offices at different levels.

The people and government of Ethiopia have been taking huge strides in cultivating democracy and good governance. To enhance this, EPRDF is committed toward boosting the direct participation of the people, especially those of the residents of the capital at the grassroots. This will enable the people to increase their involvement in the local council and safeguard their democratic rights.

With this in mind, EPRDF has become the only party to field 32,670 candidates for the 32,670 seats in kebele and sub-city councils in Addis Ababa. All its candidates were carefully vetted by the public and party members. Subsequently 138 candidates were fielded for the city administration, 2,970 for sub-city councils and around 29,700 for kebele councils. Besides, the balance in composition of the nations and nationalities of the candidates was taken into consideration as Addis Ababa is the federal capital. Accordingly, 29% of candidates of EPRDF are Amharas, 24% Oromos, 18% Tigreans and 29% from the SNNP State. In contrast, some opposition parties and independents have fielded about only 50(fifty) candidates for kebele and sub-city councils, despite the fertile conditions on the ground.

Other measures taken to make the election process smooth

 EPRDF

-          has fielded about 3.7 million candidates for the upcoming local and by-election. The number of its members has increased from 700,000 to four million within the past two years, just after the May 2005 election.

-          has provided training on the electoral code of conduct of EPRDF for party members and candidates. The training which aims at strengthening democratic practice in accordance with electoral law was given to the candidates in the metropolis and is on progress across the nation.

-          is actively participating in the discussions of political parties conducted by NEBE.

This being the case the number of voters and parties has dramatically increased. Yet baseless allegations are being leveled against EPRDF by some opposition parties that remain non-committal to the process. This might have obviously arisen from fear of defeat or an inclination to boycott the election.

The tactic cannot pay this time around as the public has learnt a lot from the past elections. Party forums are also created by the NEBE to resolve problems encountered in the process. The electoral board has again been working in consultation with the opposition in amending the electoral law, parliamentary procedures and appointment of members of the NEBE. It is also working with respected partners in the Media law.

The local and by-election which were postponed from last year following the request of the opposition parties will be conducted this April and give additional momentum to our democratization process. The activities underway are also reinforcing the democratization process in the country. This underscores the fact that the people and government of Ethiopia are making relentless effort toward the development and democratization of the nation.