NAIROBI, Kenya – Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) has reached out to Kenya’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA) in a strategic move aimed at transforming itself ahead of the forthcoming general election.
On Wednesday, May 3, 2025, a high-powered delegation of the NRM party arrived in the country for talks with Kenya’s ruling party.
The senior officials from NRM are led by the Director of External Affairs, Maj. (rtd.) Awich Pollar Awich, and the National Leadership Institute, Kyankwanzi, Col. Okei Rukogota. They are in Nairobi for a four-day official visit.
In a statement seen by Y News, UDA said the NRM officials are part of a delegation that is expected in the country at the invitation of the UDA Secretary General, Hassan Omar.
The Ugandan delegation was received by UDA’s National Treasurer Japheth Nyakundi.
NRM Secretary General Richard Todwong is expected to join the delegation later today for consultations with the UDA leadership.
What Ugandans should expect ahead of the forthcoming polls
Other officials who received the delegation include Directors Daniel Kiptoo, Rob Jillo, Grace Gicovi, and Nathaniel Mongare, among others.
The Nairobi meeting comes at a time when Ugandans are preparing for the polls on January 12, 2026.
Museveni, the incumbent president, is currently in office. Additional information, such as the specific offices up for election, participating political parties, and key policy issues, would be valuable for a more comprehensive understanding.
A minimum of 50% of the vote is required for candidates to be elected in the first round of Uganda’s two-round presidential election process. According to Chapter 142 of the Presidential Elections Act of 2000, candidates for president must be eligible to serve as Members of Parliament and be citizens of Uganda by birth. Additionally, candidates must be of sound mind and have no official affiliation with the Ugandan Electoral Commission. In 2005, term limitations were eliminated. The Ugandan Electoral Commission oversees the elections.
The highly anticipated NRM elections for village structures and LC1 chairperson flag bearers were successfully concluded in all the 72,000 village polling stations nationwide. The process began at 10 am with barazas to verify the village registers by establishing the accuracy
There are 529 seats in the Ugandan Parliament, comprising 353 legislators chosen in single-winner constituencies through first-past-the-post voting. One seat in each district is filled out of the 146 seats set aside for women, using the same procedure.
Lastly, the army fills 10 seats, adolescents fill 5, the elderly fill 5, unions fill 5, and individuals with disabilities fill 5.
These 30 seats are indirectly filled by special electoral colleges. There must be at least one elected woman in each of these groupings (at least two for the army group).
Why the NRM party recently participated in the LC1 elections
This week, the NRM party held Local Council 1 (LC1) elections.
“Grassroots democracy is the foundation of any enduring political movement, as I witnessed in Ntungamo during a baraza where we verified the NRM register and conducted village structure elections alongside fellow supporters,” said Uganda’s First Lady Janet Museveni.
However, there was cancellation of results in Moroto District and elections for flag bearers in other areas like Nwoya District.
Y News understands that these elections reflect the NRM’s internal processes for selecting candidates and establishing village-level party structures. The results of these elections also display trends in vote distribution and possible disparities.
Senior officials from Uganda’s ruling party, National Resistance Movement (NRM), led by Director of External Affairs Maj (rtd) Awich Pollar Awich and National Leadership Institute Kyankwanzi Col Okei Rukogota, have arrived in Nairobi for a four day official visit at the United
Last month, the UDA secretary general held a consultative meeting with the Executive Director of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), Odour Ongw’en, at the ODM Headquarters, Chungwa House, Nairobi.
The consultations were aimed at building synergies that further cement the foundation of the Broad-based Government (BBG) by identifying areas of convergence between the UDA and ODM and designing government programs and interventions that align with the recommendations of the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) report and the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between President Ruto and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
Also present were Sabastian Mwangangi, special advisor to the UDA Secretary General, and Jarred Omachi, ODM acting director of membership.
