Written by: Badr Ahmed

Ethiopia’s National Election Commission announced preliminary results for the general elections in 825 out of 1,138 targeted constituencies, confirming that vote counting and results transmission are still ongoing across the country.

During a press conference held yesterday, the head of the National Election Authority, Melatürk Haylu, explained that the vote counting process is taking place continuously in all polling stations belonging to the various electoral districts, noting that the Authority is making intensive efforts to ensure that the results are announced in accordance with the approved legal procedures.

More than 10,000 candidates are competing in Ethiopia's largest election.

Haylo attributed the delay in the arrival of some results to a number of factors, most notably the long distances between polling stations and electoral districts, in addition to the large number of polling stations spread throughout the country.

At the same time, she confirmed that the process of transferring the sorting results is going well.

Regarding electoral complaints, the head of the commission confirmed that the institution has allocated multiple channels to receive comments and appeals, explaining that it has taken the necessary measures to deal with them quickly and efficiently.

She added that the commission succeeded in addressing the various complaints received during the electoral process, in accordance with the nature of each complaint and the provisions of the election law.

Hailu also praised the role played by local and international observers in monitoring the elections, welcoming the constructive recommendations they made to strengthen and develop the democratic process.

The elections saw more than 10,438 candidates representing 42 political parties competing for seats in the House of Representatives and regional councils.

Following the conclusion of the elections, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed expressed his gratitude to the citizens who participated in the vote, to the staff of the National Election Authority, and to the security forces.