Overview
- Polling stations opened despite a multi-day internet shutdown that restricts communication and independent reporting.
- Many sites reported late delivery of materials, long lines, and malfunctioning biometric identification machines that slowed voting.
- The electoral commission set closing time at 4 p.m. and says results must be announced within 48 hours, with its chair urging calm and tolerance.
- Security forces deployed heavily across cities, and Amnesty International accused authorities of a broader repression campaign, citing a November rally where one person was killed.
- Authorities suspended several civic groups during the campaign, a press-monitoring organization shut its office after an Interior Ministry order, and veteran opposition figure Kizza Besigye remains jailed on treason charges.