KAMPALA—Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, 81, secured a seventh term in office in elections held January 15. The vote was followed by widespread allegations of fraud, post-election violence and the arrest and harassment of opposition figures.
Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, a former musician known as Bobi Wine, was the primary opposition candidate. Official results showed he received 25 percent of the vote. Ssentamu fled Uganda after two months in hiding and is expected to continue his campaign from abroad with support from the Ugandan diaspora.
Museveni first came to power January 26, 1986, after the National Resistance Army seized Kampala following a five-year guerrilla conflict. His rule has been highly centralized and authoritarian, spanning more than four decades.
During his first decade in power, political parties were banned and no national elections were held. Multiparty politics were reinstated in 2005, and regular elections have taken place since, though opposition groups have contested all of them and the government has maintained tight control.
Museveni has used strategies employed by long-serving leaders across Africa, including firm control over the military, extensive patronage networks and systematic political repression.
Constitutional amendments have been central to extending his tenure. In 2005, his administration removed presidential term limits. In 2017, the 75-year age limit for presidential candidates was abolished.
The 2021 elections saw severe restrictions on campaigning and voting, which authorities attributed to COVID-19 containment measures. That period saw widespread repression, with dozens killed and thousands arrested.
After the January 2026 vote, Uganda experienced a four-day nationwide internet shutdown, arbitrary arrests and violent crackdowns on protesters.
The regime maintains stability by balancing resource access with the credible threat of repression. Members of parliament supported removing constitutional limits. The military and security forces have been instrumental in suppressing dissent and preventing large-scale public mobilization.
Uganda's population is projected to reach 85 million in coming decades. This demographic shift, coupled with regional tensions, contributes to domestic pressures that could challenge the country's political stability, though short-term resilience appears assured.
Questions about presidential succession are mounting. Museveni has faced accusations of grooming his son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, for the presidency. Kainerugaba said in August 2026 that he intends to run for president in 2031.
