Ugandan voters face soldiers in the street and an internet shutdown before presidential election

KAMPALA: Ugandans are set to vote Thursday in an election that is likely to extend the rule of the long-term president while raising concerns about transparency, hereditary rule, military interference and an opposition strategy to prevent vote tampering at polling stations.

President Yoweri Museveni, who has held power since 1986, seeks a seventh term that would bring him closer to five decades in power. But he faces a strong challenge from the musician-turned-politician best known as Bobi Wine, a 43-year-old who represents those yearning for political chanSix other candidates are running for president in the East African nation of roughly 45 million people. Electoral authorities say there are 21.6 million registered voters.On Tuesday, less than 48 hours before the start of voting, the Uganda Communications Commission directed internet service providers to temporarily suspend the general public’s access to the internet, as well as the sale and registration of new SIM cards.

The government agency said the measure was “necessary to mitigate the rapid spread of online misinformation, disinformation, electoral fraud, and related risks.” It also cited a risk to national security stemming from possible violence.

The internet shutdown was a blow to pro-democracy activists and others who use the internet to share information about alleged electoral malpractices including ballot stuffing and other offenses that routinely plague Uganda’s elections.Ugandan law allows voters to gather 20 meters (65 feet) from polling stations. Electoral officials are urging Ugandans to cast a ballot and then go home, perhaps returning later to witness vote counting.

The argument over whether voters should stay at polling stations as witnesses has animated public commentary and raised fears that the election could turn violent if security forces choose to enforce the electoral body’s guidance.

“The first step is for all of us to stay at the polling stations (while observing the 20-metre distance) and ensure that nothing criminal happens,” Wine wrote Tuesday on X. “We implore everyone to use their cameras and record anything irregular.”

Analysts say Museveni will almost certainly retain power, but at 81 he has become even more reliant on the nation’s security forces to enforce his authority. His son and presumptive heir, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, is the top commander of the military, which Wine accuses of interfering in the electoral process.