KAMPALA, Uganda — As Uganda’s Electoral Commission (EC) continues to release provisional presidential election results, opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, popularly known as Bobi Wine, is leading in only 17 of the country’s 146 districts, according to figures from the sixth declaration of results. President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, seeking a seventh term, remains dominant in the overall count.
The districts where Bobi Wine holds an advantage are concentrated mainly in the Buganda and Busoga regions, areas with a history of opposition support. In Busoga, Wine led in four districts, while in Buganda, he was ahead in 13, largely in central and southern parts of the region.
Meanwhile, President Museveni of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) has maintained a substantial lead in most other districts, including many within the so-called cattle corridor, which stretches across central Uganda and has been a traditional stronghold for the ruling party. A notable exception within Buganda was Luwero District, where Wine continued to hold an advantage.
Only two of the districts where Wine was leading had completed full results reporting by the sixth declaration. In Jinja District, results from all 324 polling stations showed Wine with 32,821 votes, equivalent to 50.95 percent of the valid votes, narrowly ahead of Museveni, who received 29,949 votes (46.49 percent). Voter turnout in Jinja was relatively low, with 66,160 out of 140,262 registered voters casting ballots, about 47 percent.
In Kyotera District, which had results from all 354 polling stations, Wine secured 43,927 votes (54.18 percent) while Museveni trailed with 36,274 votes. Third-placed candidate Nathan Nandala Mafabi received 6,452 votes. Turnout in Kyotera was higher, with 82,750 of 147,536 registered voters participating, or roughly 56 percent.
In other districts where Wine was leading, results remained provisional and subject to change as additional polling station results were still being counted.
At a briefing in Lweza Tally Centre, EC chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama reported that results from 47,499 out of 50,739 polling stations, about 94 percent, had been tallied.
The latest national tallies indicate that President Museveni continues to command a substantial lead, with provisional figures showing him ahead with around 71.88 percent of the vote, compared with approximately 24.46 percent for Bobi Wine. Other candidates remain far behind, each with single-digit shares of the vote.
The 2026 election has taken place amid significant controversy. An internet blackout imposed before voting began has severely restricted the flow of information and fuelled allegations of a lack of transparency.
Bobi Wine and his supporters have rejected the provisional results, describing them as misleading and incomplete.
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Wine has urged supporters to focus on fully verified results from accredited polling stations and tallying centres, asserting that the current figures do not reflect the will of the people.
The contest has also been marked by intense security presence and reports of isolated violence, including clashes in several districts that have raised concerns among international observers about the electoral environment.
Despite the tensions, the EC has reaffirmed that only final certified results announced by the commission should be considered official, and it expects the remaining votes to be fully tallied in the coming hours.
