The High Court has nullified the election of Luyimbazi Elias Nalukoola as Member of Parliament for Kawempe North and ordered fresh elections, citing electoral irregularities that compromised the integrity of the March 13, 2025, by-election.
Justice Bernard Namanya, who delivered the ruling, found that the electoral process had been marred by substantial illegalities, including voter bribery, ballot stuffing, and discrepancies in vote tallying, which collectively violated provisions of the Parliamentary Elections Act.
The petition that led to Nalukoola’s ousting was filed by National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate Faridah Nambi, who challenged the legitimacy of the results on grounds that more than 16,000 votes were unaccounted for due to violence and destruction of electoral materials at 14 polling stations. The court agreed that the number of disenfranchised voters was significant enough to cast doubt on the final outcome, which saw Nalukoola declared winner under the National Unity Platform (NUP) banner.
During the trial, Nambi’s legal team presented compelling evidence, including testimonies and Electoral Commission documents, showing that the results from the affected polling stations were never tallied. Nalukoola, along with the Electoral Commission, acknowledged the missing data but argued it would not have altered the final result. However, the court held that the absence of results from such a large voter base created uncertainty that could not be ignored.
In his judgment, Justice Namanya declared the Kawempe North seat vacant and directed the Electoral Commission to organize a new by-election. Each party was ordered to bear its own legal costs.