Following disputes with the Federal Government in Ethiopia over whether or not to hold elections, Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) (the ruling party for one of Ethiopia’s autonomous states) has been declared the winner of the controversial regional election held on Wednesday, September 9, 2020.
This comes in just a week after the Ethiopian House of Federation declared the election as “null and void,” asserting that the poll was unconstitutional. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, in an interview with the state’s Ethiopian Broadcasting Authority, said the election was not legitimate, comparing the region’s decision to hold elections to squatters illegally building a shanty house on a piece of land they do not own.
According to the poll numbers, TPLF won 98.5% of the 190 seats for Tigray Regional Council, with the rest divided amongst opposition parties. While over 2.6 million voters were registered, turnout was 97%, according to Tigray Electoral Commission, a new independent elections umpire was established a few months ago, after the federal government moved to postpone the national elections indefinitely, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
The ruling Tigray party and the federal government of Ethiopia have been at loggerheads since Prime Minister Abiy came to power in April 2018. The federal government has repeatedly alleged the TPLF is attempting to weaken the national unity of the country.
After the indefinite postponement of elections, Tigrayan leaders rejected the extension of mandates – which would have expired in October – contending that if national elections did not happen, Abiy’s government would become illegitimate.
Lack of Press Coverage in Ethiopia
Prior to the elections, the Voice of America reported that several journalists had been barred from covering polls in the region. The decision was further condemned by the Foreign Correspondents’ Association of Ethiopia through a statement that read: “We urge Ethiopia’s federal authorities not to undermine the significant steps taken to increase media freedom over the past two years by attempting to police what journalists can or cannot report.”
Tigray is one of Ethiopia’s autonomous regional states and is home to over 6 million people. It is the only region where the ruling party of the federal government, the Prosperity Party, has no political power or influence.
