General elections were held in
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
on 14 May and 31 August 2000 for seats in the
House of Peoples' Representatives
The House of Peoples' Representatives is the lower house of the Ethiopian Federal Parliamentary Assembly. Located in the capital Addis Ababa, the House has 547 members. All are elected in theory for five-year term in single-seat constituencies. ...
and several
regional government councils. Although several opposition parties boycotted the election, 17 parties including the
All-Amhara People's Organization
The All-Amhara People's Organization or AAPO is an ethnic based political party in Ethiopia, created in 1993 by Asrat Woldeyes.
Creation
The All-Amhara People's Organization was created by Asrat Woldeyes in 1993 to try to limit the domination of ...
, the
Southern Ethiopia Peoples' Democratic Coalition
The Southern Ethiopia People's Democratic Coalition is an opposition political coalition in Ethiopia based in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region. At the last legislative elections held on 15 May 2005, the Coalition was part of ...
(SEPDC), and the
Oromo National Congress
The Oromo People's Congress (OPC) was a federalist and Oromo nationalist opposition political party in Ethiopia. It was founded in April 1996 as the Oromo National Congress by Dr. Merera Gudina, who is its chairman. However, the party licence a ...
did participate.
["Ethiopia: Country Reports on Human Rights Practices"]
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, US State Department (accessed 9 July 2009)
In round one, held on 14 May, there were 20,252,000 registered voters, of whom 90% voted. the
(EPRDF) member parties captured 481 of the 524 seats in the national election. Independents won 10 seats and other parties won six. Six of the seven constituencies in the
Hadiya Zone
Hadiya (also transliterated Hadiyya) is a zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. This zone is named after the Hadiya of the Hadiya Kingdom, whose homeland covers part of the administrative division. Hadiya ...
where elections were run, were won by the
Hadiya National Democratic Organization Hadiya may refer to :
* Hadiya Zone, a Zone in the Ethiopian Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (SNNPR)
* Hadiya Sultanate, an ancient kingdom located in South Western Ethiopia
* Hadiyya language, a language spoken by the Hadiy ...
led by
Beyene Petros.
The second round was held on 31 August for the
Somali Region
The Somali Region ( so, Deegaanka Soomaalida, am, ሱማሌ ክልል, Sumalē Kilil, ar, المنطقة الصومالية), also known as Soomaali Galbeed (''Western Somalia'') and officially the Somali Regional State, is a regional state ...
alone, with 23 seats reserved for the region in the House of Peoples' Representatives and the 168 seats in the State Council. About 75% of the 1.15 million registered voters in the Region cast ballots. Announced results gave 19 of the seats to the SPDP, and the remaining four to independent candidates.
In the Regional elections, either the EPRDF or one of its member parties won the election except in
Afar (where the
Afar National Democratic Party won 84 of the 87 local seats),
Benishangul-Gumuz
Benishangul-Gumuz ( am, ቤንሻንጉል ጉሙዝ, Benšangul Gumuz) is a regional state in northwestern Ethiopia to the border of Sudan. It was previously known as Region 6. The region's capital is Assosa. Following the adoption of the 199 ...
(where the
Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Front
The Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Front (BGPDUF; am, የቤንሻንጉልና ጉሙዝ ሕዝቦች ዴሞክራሲዊ አንድነት) was a political party in Ethiopia. In the 2010 elections, the BGPDUF won 9 seats. In local ele ...
won 71 of the 80 seats),
Gambela (where the
Gambela People's Democratic Front Gambela or Gambella may refer to:
Places
* Gambela Region, Ethiopia
* Gambela, Ethiopia, a city and separate woreda in Gambela Region
* Gambela Zuria, ''Greater Gambela'', a woreda surrounding the city of Gambela
* Gambela National Park
* Apostolic ...
won 40 of the 53 seats), and Somali (where the
Somali People's Democratic Party
The Somali Democratic Party (SDP; so, Xisbiga Dimuqraadiga Soomaalida), formerly the Ethiopian Somali People's Democratic Party, was a political party in Ethiopia, created by the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) ...
won 150 of the 168 seats).
According to observers organized by
Ethiopian Human Rights Council
The Ethiopian Human Rights Council or EHRCO is an Ethiopian human rights non-governmental organisation created in 1991 by Mesfin Woldemariam and 31 colleagues shortly after the dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam was overthrown. EHRCO's funds and s ...
, local U.N. staff, diplomatic missions, political parties, and domestic
non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
s, both the general and the regional elections that year were generally free and fair in most areas; however, serious election irregularities occurred in the
(SNNPR), particularly in the
Hadiya Zone
Hadiya (also transliterated Hadiyya) is a zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. This zone is named after the Hadiya of the Hadiya Kingdom, whose homeland covers part of the administrative division. Hadiya ...
.
Serious election irregularities in the SNNPR
According to observers organized by
Ethiopian Human Rights Council
The Ethiopian Human Rights Council or EHRCO is an Ethiopian human rights non-governmental organisation created in 1991 by Mesfin Woldemariam and 31 colleagues shortly after the dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam was overthrown. EHRCO's funds and s ...
, local U.N. staff, diplomatic missions, political parties, and domestic
non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
s, both the general and the regional elections that year were generally free and fair in most areas; however, serious election irregularities occurred in the
(SNNPR), particularly in the
Hadiya Zone
Hadiya (also transliterated Hadiyya) is a zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. This zone is named after the Hadiya of the Hadiya Kingdom, whose homeland covers part of the administrative division. Hadiya ...
. As a result, the
National Election Board of Ethiopia
The National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) () is an autonomous federal government agency which supervises the national elections of Ethiopia. The NEBE was established by Proclamation number 64/1992, and answers to the House of Peoples' R ...
(NEBE) investigated the complaints and determined that many of them had merit. These included incidents of election officials instructing voters for whom to vote, candidates campaigning at polling stations, and candidates being pressured into quitting. There also were credible reports of
ballot stuffing
Electoral fraud, sometimes referred to as election manipulation, voter fraud or vote rigging, involves illegal interference with the process of an election, either by increasing the vote share of a favored candidate, depressing the vote share of ...
, vote count fraud, voter intimidation or bribery, dismissals from work, withholding of salaries, detentions, abductions, and killings.
[
In its annual report on Human Rights, the US State Department stated that there were numerous credible reports that persons who supported or voted for opposition candidates were harassed. For example, there were credible reports that ruling party personnel withheld fertilizer and food aid in the SNNPR as retaliation for voters electing opposition candidates. According to the SEPDC, some of their supporters were suspended or dismissed from their jobs in retaliation, and some teachers in the SNNPR who served as SEPDC election observers found their salaries were withheld and were denied entry to summer update courses. many civil servants who supported the opposition were fired from their positions.][
]
Results
In round one, held on 14 May, there were 20,252,000 registered voters, of whom 90% voted.[Ethiopia Parliamentary Chamber: Elections held in 2000]
PARLINE database (accessed 20 October 2009) Results were announced in mid-June by the NEBE: the (EPRDF) captured 481 of the 524 seats in the national election, broken down between its members as follows: the Oromo Peoples' Democratic Organization
The Oromo Democratic Party ( om, Paartii Demokraatawaa Oromoo, ODP) was a political party in Ethiopia, and part of the alliance with the Amhara National Democratic Movement, the South Ethiopian Peoples' Democratic Front and the Tigrayan Peoples ...
winning 183, the Amhara National Democratic Movement
The Amhara Democratic Party (ADP) ( am, አማራ ዴሞክራሲያዊ ፓርቲ), originally known as Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM), was a political party in Ethiopia. The party was one of four members of the Ethiopian People's R ...
146, the Southern Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement
The Southern Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement (SEPDM) was a political party in Ethiopia.
At the last legislative elections, 15 May 2005, the party was part of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, that won 327 out of 527 s ...
112, and the Tigray People's Liberation Front
The Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF; ti, ህዝባዊ ወያነ ሓርነት ትግራይ, lit=Popular Struggle for the Freedom of Tigray), also called the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front, is a left-wing ethnic nationalist paramilitar ...
40. Independents won 10 seats and other parties won 6.[ Six of the seven constituencies in the ]Hadiya Zone
Hadiya (also transliterated Hadiyya) is a zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. This zone is named after the Hadiya of the Hadiya Kingdom, whose homeland covers part of the administrative division. Hadiya ...
where elections were run, were won by the Hadiya National Democratic Organization Hadiya may refer to :
* Hadiya Zone, a Zone in the Ethiopian Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (SNNPR)
* Hadiya Sultanate, an ancient kingdom located in South Western Ethiopia
* Hadiyya language, a language spoken by the Hadiy ...
led by Beyene Petros.
The second round was held August 31 for the Somali Region
The Somali Region ( so, Deegaanka Soomaalida, am, ሱማሌ ክልል, Sumalē Kilil, ar, المنطقة الصومالية), also known as Soomaali Galbeed (''Western Somalia'') and officially the Somali Regional State, is a regional state ...
alone. Candidates from the Alliance of Somali Democratic Forces
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
, the Western Somali Democratic Party
Western Somali Democratic Party (WSDP; also known as ''Somali Galbed'') is a political party in Ethiopia. It emerged from the Western Somali Liberation Front in 1975. The former President of the Somali Region, Hassan Jire Kalinle, has been the part ...
, and the Somali People's Democratic Party
The Somali Democratic Party (SDP; so, Xisbiga Dimuqraadiga Soomaalida), formerly the Ethiopian Somali People's Democratic Party, was a political party in Ethiopia, created by the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) ...
(SPDP), as well as 156 private candidates contested the 23 seats reserved for the region in the House of Peoples' Representatives and the 168 seats in the State Council. About 75% of the 1.15 million registered voters in the Region cast ballots. Announced results gave 19 of the seats to the SPDP, and the remaining four to independent candidates.[
In the Regional elections, either the EPRDF or one of its member parties won the election except in Afar (where the Afar National Democratic Party won 84 of the 87 local seats), ]Benishangul-Gumuz
Benishangul-Gumuz ( am, ቤንሻንጉል ጉሙዝ, Benšangul Gumuz) is a regional state in northwestern Ethiopia to the border of Sudan. It was previously known as Region 6. The region's capital is Assosa. Following the adoption of the 199 ...
(where the Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Front
The Benishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Front (BGPDUF; am, የቤንሻንጉልና ጉሙዝ ሕዝቦች ዴሞክራሲዊ አንድነት) was a political party in Ethiopia. In the 2010 elections, the BGPDUF won 9 seats. In local ele ...
won 71 of the 80 seats), Gambela (where the Gambela People's Democratic Front Gambela or Gambella may refer to:
Places
* Gambela Region, Ethiopia
* Gambela, Ethiopia, a city and separate woreda in Gambela Region
* Gambela Zuria, ''Greater Gambela'', a woreda surrounding the city of Gambela
* Gambela National Park
* Apostolic ...
won 40 of the 53 seats), and Somali (where the Somali People's Democratic Party
The Somali Democratic Party (SDP; so, Xisbiga Dimuqraadiga Soomaalida), formerly the Ethiopian Somali People's Democratic Party, was a political party in Ethiopia, created by the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) ...
won 150 of the 168 seats).14 May and 31 August 2000 Regional State Council Elections in Ethiopia
/ref>
References
{{Ethiopian Elections
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
General election
A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
May 2000 events in Africa
August 2000 events in Africa
Election and referendum articles with incomplete results