Ethiopia Excludes Tigray's 38 Constituencies From Election as Conflict Shadows 50.5 Million Voters
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · May 31
Ethiopia Excludes Tigray's 38 Constituencies From Election as Conflict Shadows 50.5 Million Voters
4 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 31
Tigray's 38 constituencies will not vote in Monday's general election, leaving the entire northern region excluded as Ethiopia heads to the polls.
The exclusion stems from unresolved fallout from the 2020-2022 war and a deepening rift with the TPLF, whose legal status was revoked after it resisted registering as a new party.
Security problems extend beyond Tigray: voting has already been cancelled in 30 of Amhara's 137 constituencies, while insurgencies in Amhara and Oromia killed more than 9,400 people in 2024.
More than 50.5 million voters are registered nationwide, and Abiy Ahmed's Prosperity Party is still expected to retain power in the 547-seat parliament despite opposition claims the race is the least competitive in years.
The election unfolds amid fears of a wider northern conflict, with tensions rising between Addis Ababa, Tigray's leaders and Eritrea despite a 2022 peace deal that ended a war estimated to have killed about 600,000 people.
As Ethiopia votes in a 'coronation' election, is it consolidating into a centralized state or splintering apart?
From Nobel Peace laureate to wartime leader, can Abiy Ahmed's vision of unity save a nation fractured by his own reforms?
With peace deals broken and atrocities mounting, what will it take to deliver justice for the victims of Ethiopia's civil wars?
Ethiopia’s June 2026 Election: Regional Exclusions, Humanitarian Crisis, and the Future of National Unity
Overview
Ethiopia’s parliamentary election on June 1, 2026, is taking place amid significant political tension and instability. Many opposition voices have been sidelined, and armed movements are active in regions like Amhara and Oromia, raising serious questions about the legitimacy and inclusiveness of the vote. A major concern is the exclusion of key regions, including Tigray and Amhara, from the election, meaning a large part of the population will not be represented immediately. Officials say elections in these areas will happen later, but for now, the new government’s mandate will be contested and incomplete.