2015 Ethiopian general election

none March 2017 2015 Ethiopian general election Ethiopia legislative Popular no 2010 Ethiopian general election 2010 2015 05 24 yes 2021 Ethiopian general election 2021 All 547 seats to the House of Peoples' Representatives Hailemariam Desalegn - Closing Plenary- Africa's Next Chapter - World Economic Forum on Africa 2011.jpg Hailemariam Desalegn Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front 499 500 1 Ahmed Shide - 2023 (cropped).jpg Ahmed Shide Somali People's Democratic Party 24 24 Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn EPRDF Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn EPRDF General elections were held in Ethiopia on 24 May 2015 to elect officials to the House of Peoples' Representatives. Regional Assembly elections were also held on this date.2015 African election calendar 2015 https://www.eisa.org.za/index.php/2015-election-calendar/ Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa dead 26 February 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20160104225505/https://eisa.org.za/index.php/2015-election-calendar/ 4 January 2016 dmy-all The result was a victory for the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), which won 500 of the 547 seats. Allies of the EPRDF won the remaining seats.Ethiopia's ruling party wins by landslide in general election The Guardian, 22 June 2015 Only 5.1% of the valid votes (less than 1.7 million) went to opposition parties. Electoral system The 547 members of the House of Peoples' Representatives (the lower chamber of parliament) were elected in single-member constituencies using the first-past-the-post system.Electoral system IPU The results of the election were announced one month after the election took place.Ethiopia's ruling party sweeps parliament in early vote results Reuters 27 May 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20201107190627/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ethiopia-election-idUSKBN0OC1KS20150527 7 November 2020 live https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ethiopia-election-idUSKBN0OC1KS20150527 About 93.2 percent of Ethiopia’s 36.8 million registered voters participated in the parliamentary elections,http://www.ibtimes.com/ethiopia-elections-2015-ruling-party-declares-historic-100-percent-victory-1979220 Ethiopia Elections 2015: Ruling Party Declares Historic 100 Percent Victory In Parliamentary Polls Winsor Morgan 23 June 2015 International Business Times 7 April 2017 and nearly 1.4 million (3.3%) of the total votes cast for the election were deemed "invalid." This number exceeded even the number of votes which went to any individual opposition party, highlighting the dire circumstances for opposition in the election. Invalid ballots could be discarded as such for a variety of reasons according to Ethiopia's electoral laws. As outlined by Ethiopian paper The Reporter after the election: "a ballot paper is deemed invalid where the identity of the elector is disclosed, the ballot paper is not marked or difficult to determine the intention of the voter, [voted] for more candidates than the allowed. But as was witnessed during vote counting in some polling stations, discarding ballots as invalid was not always a clear cut conclusion."http://archiveenglish.thereporterethiopia.com/content/takeaways-election-2015-result Takeaways from Election 2015 result archiveenglish.thereporterethiopia.com en 2017-04-08 https://web.archive.org/web/20170409020959/http://archiveenglish.thereporterethiopia.com/content/takeaways-election-2015-result 9 April 2017 dead The elections were delayed in the Gimbo Gawata constituency due to clashes between the EPRDF and an independent candidate, Ashebr Woldegiorgis, who filed formal complaints against the EPRDF after coming in second at 17.7% of the region's votes. Polling took place on 14 June.Polls to open in Bonga tomorrow https://web.archive.org/web/20150702203936/http://www.fanabc.com/english/index.php/ethiopian-election/item/3194-polls-to-open-in-bonga-tomorrow 2 July 2015 FBC, 13 June 2015 Campaign A total of 1,828 candidates contested the 547 seats, of which nine were independents and the remainder represented 44 parties. Of the 1,828 candidates, 1,527 were men and 801 women. To help voters make informed decisions for the May Federal and National Elections, the Joint Council of Political Parties selected nine subjects as the agendas for televised debates between the political parties in the planned televised debating sessions. The subjects identified for debate in the televised election programs cover a variety of subjects: the Multi-Party System and Building Democracy; Federalism; Agricultural and Rural Policy; Urban Development and Industrial Policy; Good Governance and the Rule of Law; National Security; Foreign Policy; Infrastructure; Education and Health.http://allafrica.com/stories/201502261434.html allAfrica https://web.archive.org/web/20150227124953/http://allafrica.com/stories/201502261434.html 2015-02-27 dead Despite these structures being in place, there were obstacles particularly from the ruling government that did not allow for an easy campaign period. For example, "on April 1, 2015, Yilkal Getnet (Eng.), president of the Blue Party (known in Amharic as Semayawi Party) had planned to travel to the United States for campaigning with the Ethiopian Diaspora there, according to Yonatan Tesfaye, public relations head of the party. However, his plan was aborted, because his passport was snatched by the authorities."http://allafrica.com/stories/201504070026.html allAfrica https://web.archive.org/web/20150407094821/http://allafrica.com/stories/201504070026.html 2015-04-07 dead The censorship in Ethiopia makes it difficult for members of opposition parties to effectively campaign to the general Ethiopian populous, thus limiting knowledge of political candidates."World Report 2015: Ethiopia." Human Rights Watch. Accessed 4 April 2017. Leaders of opposition parties have been arrested, including during the month after this election. Number of candidates within each party Political Parties Running for ElectionRegional Assembly Candidates (Men)Regional Assembly Candidates (Women)House of Peoples' Representatives Candidates (Men)House of Peoples' Representatives Candidates (Women)Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front714636314187Ethiopia Federal Democratic Unity Forum607322619Blue Party19591354Ethiopian Democratic Party154181596Ethiopian Somali People's Democratic Party196771014Coalition for Unity and Democratic Party103169315All Ethiopian Democratic Organization9811762Unity for Democracy and Justice8213893Gambela People's Unity Democratic Movement1154130All Oromo People Democratic Party655409New Generation Party499536Benishangul-Gumuz People's Democratic Party801954Ethiopian Raie Party584402Afar National Democratic Party771662Gumuz People's Democratic Movement78780Ethiopian Democratic Unity Movement335336Ethiopia Democratic Union394222Ethiopian Justice and Democratic Forces Front315233Sidama Hadicho People Democratic Organization376141Oromo National Congress310203Geda System Advancement Party285180All Ethiopian National Movement1661216Agew Democratic Party262151Ethiopian Peace and Democratic Party137106Gedeo People Democratic Organization21070Harari National League10810Oromo Liberation Unity Front9050Bench People Democratic Organization9030Wolayta People Democratic Front5340Independent Candidates3090Welene People Democratic Party3070Dilwabi Peoples' Democratic Movement6120Donga People Democratic Organization6020Denta Dubamo Kichinchila People's Democratic Organization3220Kembata People's Congress4120All-Amhara People's Organization3040Ethiopian's Unity Democratic Organization0060Somali Democratic Alliance Forces50 - -Dube and Degeni Nationality Democratic Party2120Argoba People Democratic Organization3010Argoba Nationality Democratic Movement3010Tigri Worgi Nationality Democratic Organization - -30Oromo Liberation Unity Front - -30Western Somali Democratic Party20 - -All Ethiopian Democratic Party - -20Sodo Gordona Peoples' Democratic Organization - -10Ethiopian National Unity Party - -10Source: National Electoral Board Conduct The elections were not free and fair; the government-controlled nationwide election board declared the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, the authoritarian ruling party in Ethiopia for more than two decades, and its allies to have won every single seat. In 2016, the Electoral Integrity Project, a panel of scholars and experts on election integrity, noted that the election occurred amid "harassment of opposition parties, censorship of the media and repression of human rights"; it was ranked as the worst election on the Perceptions of Electoral Integrity (PEI) expert dataset.Pippa Norris, Ferran Martinez i Coma, Alessandro Nai & Max Grömping, The Electoral Integrity Project: The Year in Elections, 2015 (2016). Human rights groups condemned the election as a sham; Human Rights Watch stated that the election was nondemocratic because, although there "may not have been widespread violence or blatant ballot box stuffing on Election Day," the government's "systematic repression of basic rights" made it "extremely unlikely that Ethiopians would feel safe" expressing opposition views.https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/world/africa/obama-calls-ethiopian-government-democratically-elected.html Obama, in Ethiopia, Calls Its Government 'Democratically Elected' Baker Peter 27 July 2015 The New York Times Fortin Jacey 0362-4331 Jason Mosley, an associate fellow of the Africa program at Chatham House in London, writing ahead of the elections, described the election as an attempt by the ruling EPRDF to foster "controlled" or "non-competitive" political participation by the Ethiopian people; he added that the competitiveness of the opposition parties was undermined by both "internal divisions and bureaucratic obstacles."Mosley, Jason. "Ethiopia's elections are just an exercise in controlled political participation." The Guardian, 22 May 2015. Merga Bekana, the electoral board chairman at the time, declared the election to have been "free, fair, peaceful, credible and democratic" while the Ethiopian opposition, including Medrek coalition and the Semayawi (Blue) party, rejected the official declaration of results, citing the harassment and abuses that occurred.https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ethiopia-election/ethiopia-declares-election-sweep-for-ruling-party-critics-cry-foul-idUSKBN0P21QY20150622 Ethiopia declares election sweep for ruling party, critics cry foul 22 June 2015 Reuters Maasho Aaron The Blue Party called the election an "undemocratic disgrace"—citing the government's refusal to register scores of its party members as candidates, as well as arrests of its candidates—and a signal that Ethiopia was a one-party state.Ethiopia opposition says elections an 'undemocratic disgrace', Agence France-Presse (29 May 2015). Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn dismissed reports of abuses.https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ethiopia-election-idUSKBN0OC1KS20150527 Ethiopia's ruling party sweeps parliament in early vote results Maasho Aaron 27 May 2015 Reuters The United States Department of State said that the United States remained "deeply concerned by continued restrictions on civil society, media, opposition parties, and independent voices and views" in Ethiopia, and in July 2015, U.S. National Security Adviser Susan E. Rice stated that the election results were not credible. However, in July 2015, President Barack Obama visited Ethiopia and, at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Desalegn, referred to the government as "democratically elected"; while human rights groups had called for Obama to more forcefully press for democratic reforms, Obama instead made a more mild call for the Ethiopian government to become more open to opposition. Obama's approach was criticized by the Ethiopian opposition. There were no international election observers from Western countries; the European Union (EU) declined to participate in the proceedings on the grounds that Ethiopia had ignored the recommendations it provided after the previous round of elections that were also won by a questionable landslide.https://www.ibtimes.com/ethiopia-elections-2015-guide-no-western-observers-monitor-vote-already-marred-1933303 Ethiopia Elections 2015 Guide: No Western Observers To Monitor Vote Already Marred By Repression 2015-05-22 International Business Times The EU said that Ethiopia had not yet developed democratically and expressed concern over "arrests of journalists and opposition politicians, closure of a number of media outlets and obstacles faced by the opposition in conducting its campaign." The African Union (AU), which monitored the election, declared the election "calm, peaceful, and credible" (but not "free and fair");Felix Horne https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/06/23/dispatches-alarm-bells-ethiopias-100-election-victory# Dispatches: Alarm Bells for Ethiopia's 100% Election Victory Human Rights Watch 23 June 2015https://www.eisa.org/pdf/eth2015au2.pdf AFRICAN UNION ELECTION OBSERVATION MISSION TO THE 24 MAY 2015 PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN THE FEDERAL DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF ETHIOPIA: PRELIMINARY STATEMENT PRESENTED BY H.E. HIFIKEPUNYE POHAMBA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA AND HEAD OF THE AFRICAN UNION OBSERVATION MISSION African Union 26 May 2015 the African Union Election Observation Mission did, however, note several irregularities. Results House of Peoples' Representatives The election found women gaining a more favorable percentage of seats, with men holding about 61% of the seats, and women holding about 39%. File:Ethiopia House of Peoples' Representatives 2015.svg Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front 500 +1 Ethiopian Somali People's Democratic Party 24 0 #87CEEB Benishangul-Gumuz People's Democratic Unity Front 9 0 Afar National Democratic Party 8 0 Gambela People's Democratic Movement 3 0 Argoba People's Democratic Organization 1 0 #FF7F00 Hareri National League 1 0 Agew Democratic Party 0 All Ethiopian Democratic Organization 0 All Ethiopian Democratic Party 0 All Ethiopian National Movement 0 #C8433C All Oromo People Democratic Party 0 All-Amhara People's Organization 0 #FF0000 Argoba Nationality Democratic Movement 0 Bench People Democratic Organization 0 Blue Party 0 blue Coalition for Unity and Democracy 0 Denta Dubamo Kichinchila People's Democratic Organization 0 Dilwabi Peoples' Democratic Movement 0 Donga People Democratic Organization 0 Dube and Degeni Nationality Democratic Party 0 Ethiopia Democratic Union 0 Ethiopian Democratic Party 0 Ethiopian Democratic Unity Movement 0 Ethiopian Justice and Democratic Forces Front 0 Ethiopian National Unity Party 0 Ethiopian Peace and Democratic Party 0 Ethiopian Raie Party 0 Ethiopian's Unity Democratic Organization 0 Geda System Advancement Party 0 Gedeo People Democratic Organization 0 Gumuz People's Democratic Movement 0 Kembata People's Congress 0 Medrek 0 –1 New Generation Party 0 Oromo Liberation Unity Front 0 Oromo People's Congress 0 #2E8B57 Sidama Hadicho People Democratic Organization 0 Sodo Gordona Peoples' Democratic Organization 0 Tigri Worgi Nationality Democratic Organization 0 Unity for Democracy and Justice 0 #8B0000 Welene People Democratic Party 0 Wolayta People Democratic Front 0 Independents 0 –1 Undeclared 1 – 34351444 36851461 0 IPU Regional assemblies RegionPartyVotes%SeatsAfarAfar National Democratic Party817,107 93Argoba Nationality Democratic Organization8,253 3AmharaAmhara National Democratic Movement7,314,564 294Benishangul-GumuzBenishangul Gumuz People's Democratic Party222,790 99GambelaGambela People's Democratic Movement195,335 155HarariHareri National League84,097 18Oromo Peoples' Democratic Organization19,791 18OromiaOromo Peoples' Democratic Organization10,877,190 537SNNPSouthern Ethiopian People's Democratic Movement5,836,849 345Vacant––3SomaliSomali People's Democratic Party2,621,088 273TigrayTigrayan People's Liberation Front2,374,574 152Source: National Electoral Board References http://electionethiopia.org/en/home.html unfit https://web.archive.org/web/20160305154240/http://electionethiopia.org/en/home.html 5 March 2016 National Election Board of Ethiopia Official Results of the 24th May 2015 General Elections Ethiopia General Category:General elections in Ethiopia General Category:Election and referendum articles with incomplete results