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Preliminary Results Show TPLF with Strong Regional Poll Lead

Sep 10 , 2020


Close to 2.7 million voters were registered in 94 counties of Tigray Regional State to elect legislators for the regional council.


Earlier results posted at the various polling stations in Tigay Regional State have indicated that the incumbent Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) enjoys a lead up against its four contenders in a controversial regional election.

The Regional State is an exception in holding council elections yesterday, September 9, 2020, in defiance of a decree by the House of Federation. It already had declared the process "unconstitutional" and the outcome "illegitimate" a week ago.

Polling stations in Tigray region have started posting results this morning with many of them showing the ruling party having clear leads, some of them by a margin of up to 80pc. Opposition parties were expected to have a better performance due to the relatively vibrant atmosphere of the campaigns, predominantly focused on urban areas.

The parties and the candidates were allocated media airtime and financial support this election cycle after a special provision added to an electoral directive has established a regional commission to undertake the elections.

"We've received less votes than we'd originally expected," Abraha Teklu, vice chairperson of the National Tigray Congress Party (NTCP), aka Baytona, told Fortune, pointing out that, "We have to wait for the Commission to announce the final results."

Close to 2.7 million voters were registered overall, and 96.4pc of them in Meqelle have cast their ballots, according to Muluwork Kidanemariam, the commissioner.

The Tigray Regional State moved forward with elections after the House of Federation passed a decision back in June postponing elections for federal and regional legislators until COVID-19 is no longer considered a threat to public health. Over 2,600 polling stations in 94 weredas across the Regional State were open where voters were casting their ballots to fill 190 seats in the regional legislative council.

The final election results are set to be announced on September 13, according to the initial schedule of the Commission. With the amended election law of the Regional State, opposition parties could get seats in the Council in proportion to the votes they have received. A total of 80pc of the seats are slated for winners in the first-past-the-post electoral system.


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