ADDIS ABABA, June 22 — Ethiopia’s ruling Prosperity Party is on course to remain in power after the National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) on Sunday announced it had won the country’s seventh general election, opening the door for a new government to be formed.
In results released in Addis Ababa, the NEBE said the Prosperity Party captured 438 of the 486 seats contested in the House of Peoples’ Representatives (HoPR), the lower house of parliament, in the June 1 vote.
By constitutional design, the party or coalition that secures a majority in the HoPR is responsible for forming the government and putting forward the prime minister.
The HoPR has 547 seats in total, but the NEBE said results were announced for only 486 constituencies. Some seats were left out because of electoral irregularities in certain areas despite voting having taken place, while in others elections could not be conducted because of security concerns.
NEBE data showed that 42 political parties and independent candidates took part in the election, with more than 10,000 contenders running for seats in the HoPR and regional councils. The Prosperity Party’s decisive showing gives it a clear path to lead Ethiopia’s next government in the months ahead.
The party also dominated the sixth general election in June 2021, when it won 410 of the 484 parliamentary seats contested.
According to the election board, turnout was exceptionally high, with more than 96 percent of the over 54 million registered voters casting ballots on June 1. Ethiopia has an estimated population of about 130 million.
Special voting was also organized on June 9 for more than 28,600 internally displaced persons (IDPs) and over 126,400 members of the Ethiopian National Defense Force, who voted at hundreds of polling stations set up in displacement and military camps nationwide.
Political analysts have pointed to the fragmented opposition as a major reason behind the Prosperity Party’s sweeping victory. Observers also said rival parties struggled to offer persuasive policy alternatives during the campaign, weakening their challenge to the ruling party.
At the announcement ceremony, NEBE Chairperson Melatwork Hailu said the election had been conducted in “a fair, peaceful and democratic manner” despite the many difficulties involved.
The board said administering the vote at more than 52,000 polling stations across the country created substantial logistical hurdles, leading authorities to extend voting hours until midnight on election day to handle the heavy turnout.
Speaking at the same event, African Union Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Bankole Adeoye, commended the NEBE and the Ethiopian government “for their successful step towards democracy,” and reiterated the African Union’s “unwavering commitment to Ethiopia’s peaceful democratic consolidation.”
