Ethiopia to vote on June 1 as Abiy's ruling party eyes landslide victory

Ethiopia will hold general elections on June 1, 2026, with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s Prosperity Party widely expected to win. Opposition fragmentation and violence in parts of the country could prevent millions from voting. In Addis Ababa, major roads including Meskel Square have been closed for ruling-party rallies, while opposition parties report barriers to comparable gatherings. Some voters describe pressure to attend rallies to avoid workplace ostracism, especially for public-sector employees. The electoral board reports more than 50 million registered voters, but critics dispute the figure due to ongoing conflicts in regions such as Amhara and Oromia and instability after the Tigray conflict. Several populous regions remain unstable after a civil war ended in 2022, with large-scale deaths and displacement.

"Ethiopia will hold general elections on June 1, 2026, with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's governing Prosperity Party (PP) widely expected to secure a decisive victory. A fragmented opposition and violence in parts of the country could keep millions from voting. In the capital, Addis Ababa, the ruling party has closed major roads, including Meskel Square in the city centre, to stage large rallies for supporters, while opposition parties say they have been barred from holding comparable gatherings."

"Henok Gebre-Selassie, a 29-year-old contract courier at a government office, attended a large campaign rally this week after being transported from his workplace in the early hours of the morning, despite his strong misgivings about the administration. He said he felt he would be ostracised at work if he did not join colleagues who were pressured into attending out of concern for their public sector jobs."

"This government has waged endless wars while famine remains a major challenge, and yet it is focused on building parks and skyscrapers, while pushing many of us to the outskirts of the city where infrastructure is still poor, Henok said. Ethiopia's electoral board says more than 50 million people have registered to vote out of a population of at least 130 million, but critics dispute the figures, saying large parts of the country remain affected by conflicts in regions including Amhara and Oromia, as well as lingering instability following the Tigray conflict."

"Several of the country's most populous regions, including Amhara, Oromia, Gambella and Tigray, remain unstable after a civil war that ended in 2022, killing an estimated 600,000 people and displacing millions. The polls are primarily a symbolic exercise intended to confer legitimacy on the incumbent, Kjetil Tronvoll, professor at Oslo New University College and an expert on Ethiopia, told Al Jazeera"

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