By Ebuka Onyekwelu, Ph.D
Out of about 54 million registered voters in Ethiopia, about 40 million voters cast their votes in the country’s parliamentary election that saw the Prosperity Party (PP) sweeping the elections by at least 90%, winning 438 out of 486 seats, the country’s electoral umpire, the National Elections Board (NEBE), announced. In contrast, out of over 87 million registered voters in Nigeria in 2023, only about 24 million voters cast their vote in the country’s crucial presidential election of that year. Ethiopia’s population is projected at about 130 million people, while Nigeria’s population is over 240 million, making both countries Africa’s two most populous countries.
The PP is the Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed’s party, and so the ruling party in Ethiopia. Mr. Ahmed has been the Prime Minister since 2018 and received the Nobel Peace Prize for fostering peace with Eritrea. However, he is now increasingly criticized for authoritarian tendencies. But, for this year’s election in the East African country of Ethiopia, there is no united opposition. Consequently, they have no real chance of unseating the Prime Minister. This is similar to the case in Nigeria, where opposition is fragmented ahead of next year’s election in the most populous Black African country in the world. On Saturday, a governorship election held in Ekiti State, a state in the Southwestern suburb of Nigeria, as well as some by-elections to fill vacant legislative seats across the federation, were all won by Nigeria’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), while opposition political parties like the PDP, ADC and NDC, earned very distant positions, reflecting a potential outcome of Nigeria’s 2027 General Elections.
In Ethiopia, about 143 polling stations could not open over security concerns, NEBE reported, highlighting a graphic illustration of how insecurity impacts African democracy by disenfranchising eligible voters.
With the PP sweeping the constituency seats, it is likely expected that by September or October, when the members of the parliament shall be electing the country’s Prime Minister, Mr. Abiy Ahmed, will be reelected as Ethiopia’s Prime Minister.
