The 2021 Ethiopian general election to elect members of the
House of Peoples' Representatives
The House of Peoples' Representatives is the lower house of the Ethiopia, 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 constit ...
was held on 21 June 2021 and 30 September 2021. Regional elections were also held on those dates.
The election was initially scheduled for 29 August 2020, but it was delayed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
. Regional and municipal council elections were also planned to be held at the same time. In May 2020, the sitting House of Peoples' Representatives voted to postpone the election until 2021. In late December 2020, 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' Re ...
(NEBE) said the election would take place on 5 June 2021, before it was further delayed until 21 June. It was the first multi-party election in Ethiopia since the
2005 election.
The
(EPRDF), the political coalition that had dominated Ethiopian politics since the overthrow of the
Derg
The Derg (also spelled Dergue; , ), officially the Provisional Military Administrative Council (PMAC), was the military junta that ruled Ethiopia, then including present-day Eritrea, from 1974 to 1987, when the military leadership formally " c ...
regime in 1991, was dissolved on 1 December 2019. Three of its four-member parties, the
Amhara Democratic Party
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 ...
(ADP),
Oromo Democratic Party (ODP) and
Southern Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement (SEPDM), merged to form the
Prosperity Party
The Prosperity Party ( am, ብልጽግና ፓርቲ, Bilits’igina Paritī; om, Paartii Badhaadhiinaa) is a political party in Ethiopia that was established on 1 December 2019 as a successor to the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic F ...
, which inherited the EPRDF's role as the governing party. The last leader of the EPRDF, Prime Minister
Abiy Ahmed
Abiy Ahmed Ali ( om, Abiyi Ahmed Alii; am, አብይ አሕመድ ዐሊ; born 15 August 1976) is an Ethiopian politician who has been the 4th prime minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia since 2 April 2018. He won the 2019 ...
, became the new party's first leader.
Bekele Gerba
Bekele Gerba (born 1961) is an Ethiopian politician and activist. He is a member of Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) which promotes political change by nonviolence. He was imprisoned from 2011 to 2015, 2015–2018 and again on 30 June 2020 foll ...
and
Jawar Mohammed, members of the
Oromo Federalist Congress
The Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) (, KFO; is a political party based in Ethiopia that was created in 2012 from the merger of the Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement and Oromo People's Congress.
Creation
In July 2012, Oromo Federalist Democrat ...
(OFC),
were imprisoned on 30 June 2020, following a crackdown by
the government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
after the murder of
Hachalu Hundessa
Hachalu Hundessa ( om, Haacaaluu Hundeessaa Boonsaa; am, ሃጫሉ ሁንዴሳ; 1986 – 29 June 2020) was an Ethiopian singer, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Hachalu played a significant role in the 2014–2016 Oromo protests that l ...
. On 19 September 2020, both were charged with terrorism.
Jawar denied the charges and claimed the arrests were politically motivated.
The OFC and the
Oromo Liberation Front
The Oromo Liberation Front ( om, Adda Bilisummaa Oromoo, abbreviated: ABO; English abbreviation: OLF) is an Oromo nationalist political party formed in 1973 to promote self-determination for the Oromo people inhabiting today's Oromia Region and ...
were planning to participate in the election but withdrew, claiming that the results would be rigged under the Prime Minister.
The election was a landslide victory for the Prosperity Party. On 30 September 2021, voting took place in 47 constituencies of the
Harari,
SNNPR
The Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (often abbreviated as SNNPR; am, የደቡብ ብሔር ብሔረሰቦችና ሕዝቦች ክልል, Yädäbub Bḥer Bḥeräsäbočna Hzboč Kllə) is a regional state in southwestern E ...
, and
Somali regions.
The House of Peoples' Representatives confirmed incumbent Abiy Ahmed as prime minister for a five-year term on 4 October 2021.
African Union
The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling for the establishment of the Africa ...
described the election as an improvement compared to the 2015 election and positively overall, urging the government to continue the commitment to democracy.
Background
Wollo, Amhara Region
A conflict between Oromo residents and Amhara Special Forces started in January 2021. According to Hassan Hadiya, a resident of
Kemise
Kemise (; ) is a town and administrative seat of the Oromia Zone in the Amhara Region, Ethiopia. Kemise is northeast of the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa and has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 1424 meters above sea level. It ...
, it started after Amhara Special Forces killed a person at the entrance of the grand mosque in
Ataye, in the
Oromia Zone
The Oromia Zone ( om, Godina Oromiyaa; Amharic: ኦሮሚያ ዞን) is a zone in Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Oromia is named for the Oromo people, who settled along the edge of the Ethiopian Highlands that form this Zone. Oromia Zone is bordered ...
of the
Amhara Region. Another resident of Kemise, stated that the Amhara Liyu police were attacking civilians. Eyewitnesses blamed the regional Amhara Special Forces while the Amhara regional government accused both the OLF-Shene and TPLF of the violence. Two members of the Ethiopian parliament accused Amhara Liyu police of killing an Oromo civilian in Ataye, saying: "Amhara Militia used OLF-Shane as a pretext to commit war crime on Oromo farmers in Wollo for the three major reasons the MP said on 11th Session of parliament of Ethiopia. The reasons are: (1) their national identity (being an Oromo), (2) their religious identity (being Muslim), and (3) use the atrocity as a bargaining threat to fulfill all their demands in Oromia region." With regard to the attack of
Wallo Oromos in the Oromia Zone of the Amhara Region by Amhara region militia in March 2021, the OPP and APP issued opposing statements, each blaming the other ethnic group for causing the violence and killings. The Borkena news website and an Amhara region official claimed that the OLF targeted Ataye.
Shashemene massacre
Shashamane, a town south of
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...
, was the scene of a
pogrom
A pogrom () is a violent riot incited with the aim of massacring or expelling an ethnic or religious group, particularly Jews. The term entered the English language from Russian to describe 19th- and 20th-century attacks on Jews in the Russia ...
massacre that targeted
Orthodox Christians
Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churc ...
, ethnic
Amharas
Amharas ( am, አማራ, Āmara; gez, ዐምሐራ, ʾÄməḥära) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group which is indigenous to Ethiopia, traditionally inhabiting parts of the northwest Highlands of Ethiopia, particularly inhabiting the Amhara ...
,
Gurages
The Gurage (, Gurage: ጉራጌ) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group inhabiting Ethiopia.G. W. E. Huntingford, "William A. Shack: The Gurage: a people of the ensete culture" They inhabit the Gurage Zone, a fertile, semi-mountainous region in ce ...
and other non-Oromos. The violence was triggered by the murder of singer
Hachalu Hundessa
Hachalu Hundessa ( om, Haacaaluu Hundeessaa Boonsaa; am, ሃጫሉ ሁንዴሳ; 1986 – 29 June 2020) was an Ethiopian singer, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Hachalu played a significant role in the 2014–2016 Oromo protests that l ...
in a
Galan condominium. An umbrella humanitarian organization, OTAGE, has engaged a legal firm, specialising in international crimes, to bring those responsible to justice.
Tigray War
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 ...
(TPLF), the dominant component of the EPRDF, was the only constituent party that had not merged into the Prosperity Party. In September 2020, the
Tigray Region
The Tigray Region, officially the Tigray National Regional State, is the northernmost regional state in Ethiopia. The Tigray Region is the homeland of the Tigrayan, Irob, and Kunama people. Its capital and largest city is Mekelle. Tigray is ...
held a
regional election
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
that the Prosperity Party-led government deemed illegal.
On 4 November, Tigray regional security forces
attacked the headquarters of the Northern Command of the
Ethiopian National Defense Force
The Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) ( am, የኢፌዲሪ መከላከያ ሠራዊት, Ye’īfēdērī mekelakeya šerawīt, lit=FDRE Defense Force) is the military force of Ethiopia. Civilian control of the military is carried out t ...
(ENDF), leading to armed conflict in the between the government and the Tigray region. In late 2020, the Tigray Region government was replaced by the
Transitional Government of Tigray
The Transitional Government of Tigray was a caretaker administration that was formally declared by the House of Federation of Ethiopia on 7 November 2020, in the context of a conflict between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), in po ...
.
TPLF was then dissolved by NEBE. There have been reports of
war crimes committed against civilians since the breakout of the war.
Parties and coalitions
Delays
In addition to the Tigray War, there have also been reports of delays in both constituencies and entire regions due to security concerns and logistics.
Constituencies
On 22 May, the NEBE announced that 40 constituencies in six regions would not hold elections on the same day, but later. According to the Board, this was from a lack of voter registration, logistical issues, and security problems in many constituencies.
Regions
On 6 June, the NEBE stated that due to irregularities in printing ballot papers, the election in the
Harari Region and 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 ...
would be held in a second round on 6 September. This also came when the board announced voting would not take place in the war-torn Tigray Region. Combined, these regions constitute 63 out of 547 seats. In August, the voting date was moved once again to 30 September 2021.
Results
On 10 July, partial election results were released with the Prosperity Party winning at least 410 seats, well enough to secure the majority and remain in power. The National Movement of Amhara won 5 seats, Ethiopian Citizens For Social Justice Party won 4 seats,
Gedeo People's Democratic Party
The Gedeo People's Democratic Party (Amharic: የጌዲዮን ህዝቦች ዲሞክራሲያዊ ፓርቲ, GPDP), also formerly known as Gedeo People's Democratic Organization (GPDO), is a political party in Ethiopia founded in 1992 as part of So ...
won 2 seats, and 1 seat went to an independent candidate. On 30 September 2021, the elections took place in 47 constituencies which had been delayed. Results from those constituencies were announced on 2 November 2021. On 4 October 2021, the House of Peoples' Representatives confirmed incumbent Abiy Ahmed as prime minister for a five-year term.
Reactions
Getachew Reda
Getachew Reda (Tigrinya and Amharic: ጌታቸው ረዳ; born June 1974) is an Ethiopian politician who is currently an advisor to the president of the Tigray Region, Debretsion Gebremichael.
Getachew is also an executive committee member and ...
, a spokesperson for 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 ...
, mocked the election in a tweet, saying the
Tigray Defense Forces
The Tigray Defense Forces ( ti, ሓይልታት ምክልኻል ትግራይ, italic=no; TDF: ሓምት), colloquially ''Tigray Army'' () is a paramilitary rebel group in Tigray. It was founded by distant former generals of Ethiopia in 2020 t ...
had captured hundreds of
ENDF soldiers as a gift for Abiy's "coronation as the Naked Emperor of Ethiopia."
The
African Union
The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling for the establishment of the Africa ...
, which observed the conduct of the elections, said in a statement:
It is noteworthy that the June 2021 general elections took place within the context of reforms that opened the political and civic space which enhanced the enjoyment of more basic rights and freedoms in comparison to the 2015 elections. Among the many positive political developments, the most prominent were the institutional strengthening of the NEBE, the release of political prisoners and the return of exiled political activists. The Mission concludes that despite some operational, logistical, security, political and COVID-19 related challenges, overall, the pre-election and Election Day processes were conducted in an orderly, peaceful and credible manner. There was nothing, in the Mission’s estimation, that distracted from the credible conduct of the elections. The Mission, therefore, commends all Ethiopians for the demonstrated commitment to the democratic development of the country. The AUEOM calls on all stakeholders to remain calm in the remaining electoral phase. The Mission urges any stakeholder that is dissatisfied with the electoral outcome to seek redress through the established legal and institutional mechanisms.
Another observer delegation to the elections, a limited joint mission of the
International Republican Institute
The International Republican Institute (IRI) is an American nonprofit organization. Most of its board is drawn from the Republican Party. It is committed to advancing freedom and democracy worldwide by helping political parties to become more iss ...
and the
National Democratic Institute
The National Democratic Institute (NDI), or National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, is a non-profit American NGO that works with partners in developing countries to increase the effectiveness of democratic institutions. The NDI's ...
, found that the elections had been preceded by promising political reforms, but that:
political space, participation, and competition were acutely limited by widespread insecurity, open conflicts, and other serious constraints in the electoral environment... Though there were important improvements over past elections, particularly relating to the national election body and election monitoring by political parties and civil society, the environment fell short of essential standards for civil liberties, equitable campaign conditions, and security.
Other civil society organisations expressed similar misgivings, as did the
United States Secretary of State
The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...
, who said in a statement that the "electoral process... was not free or fair for all Ethiopians". Five opposition parties – the
Ethiopian Social Democratic Party
The Ethiopian Social Democratic Party ( am, ኢትዮጵያ ማህበረ-ዴሞክራሲ ፌደራላዊ ፓርቲ, ESDP) is a political party in Ethiopia. the leaders of the ESDP are chairman Dr. Beyene Petros, vice chairman Mulu Meja, and se ...
, Balderas for True Democracy,
National Movement of Amhara
National Movement of Amhara ( am, የአማራ ብሔራዊ ንቅናቄ, translit=Ye’āmara Biḥērawī Nik’inak’ē, NaMA) is a right-wing Amhara ethnic nationalist political party created in June 2018 in Bahir Dar, capital of the Am ...
, Afar People's Party, and
Ethiopian Citizens for Social Justice
Ethiopian Citizens for Social Justice ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ዜጎች ለማኅበራዊ ፍትህ, translit=ye-Ïtiyop'iya zēgochi le-mahiberawī fitih; abbreviated am, ኢዜማ, label=none, translit=EZEMA) is a liberal political party in ...
– submitted complaints about irregularities in the electoral process.
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 ( ...
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 ...
Ethiopian civil conflict (2018–present)
General elections in Ethiopia
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 ...
Election and referendum articles with incomplete results