When Esther Ainembabazi stepped behind her preferred candidate during Tuesday’s Local Council One (LC1) elections, she had no regrets. Unlike a secret ballot, where choices remain private, the queue voting system meant everyone in the village could see exactly where she stood. ‘I supported whom I believed in, and I was okay and loud about it,’ she says. She did not feel pressured by family members, neighbours or local leaders to vote a certain way. Yet, as the celebrations and disappointments faded, she noticed something else lingering in the village. ‘People took sides, and some family members and friends did not stand behind their own people, which ruined relationships.
I also saw arguments and name-calling after the results,’ she says. Her experience captures the debate surrounding Uganda’s queue voting system, where voters line up behind candidates instead of casting secret ballots. While supporters praise it for promoting transparency and making election results instantly verifiable, critics argue that exposing voters’ choices can deepen divisions long after polling ends. For Ainembabazi, and many others, both systems have strengths.
‘Public voting builds accountability, but a secret ballot gives people the freedom to choose without pressure,’ she says. She believes the openness of queue voting can make elected leaders more accountable to the communities they serve. At the same time, she warns that it may influence how people vote. ‘It increases accountability, but it can also make people vote out of fear, group influence or even because of bribery instead of their own choice.’
Politics should end with the election
The newly elected LC1 chairperson of Ssanga Village, Abdallah Ahmed, agrees that the system has advantages but believes it should evolve. ‘The queue voting system is simple, transparent and allows results to be known immediately. However, because votes are cast openly, some people felt uncomfortable expressing their true choice,’ he says. Although the election generated excitement and differing opinions, Ahmed says the village largely remained peaceful.
‘Now that the election is over, it is time to put politics aside and work together for the good of our village.’ Having won the election, he says his responsibility extends beyond those who stood behind him. ‘As the LC1 chairperson, I will represent everyone equally, regardless of how they voted. My door has always been, is and will always be open.’ He believes the system’s transparency should be preserved while introducing safeguards that better protect voters’ privacy.
People fear voting freely
Not everyone shares that view.
For Edith Kyomukama, the NRM flag bearer in Kigongi B, Kabale District, who lost to the incumbent, queue voting discourages free choice altogether. ‘It is not fair because most people fear voting freely,’ she says. According to Kyomukama, some voters feel obliged to support candidates from whom they accepted money, while others choose not to vote at all to avoid conflicts with neighbours and relatives. She also alleges that there were irregularities at her polling station, including people she believes were not on the voters’ register taking part in the exercise, and criticised what she described as inadequate security.
These claims could not immediately be independently verified. ‘I did not use money to get people on my side. The people who lined up behind me did so because they wanted to,’ she says. Despite losing, she says leadership should not be determined by political support alone. ‘If I am to get information from the government or serve this community, I have to work with everyone and that includes those who voted for me and those who did not.’
Chaos in some villages
In Gombe Village, Kagoma in Jinja District, residents did not vote on Tuesday after disputes reportedly broke out over voter eligibility. Namukose Saidah says disagreements emerged when some people attempted to vote despite their names allegedly not appearing on the voters’ register. ‘The chaos brought police, and voting was suspended,’ she says. Like other interviewees, Namukose believes queue voting has both advantages and disadvantages.
‘It is good and bad at the same time because it creates misunderstandings among people. You may think people are going to line up behind you, only to watch them join another queue,’ she says. She believes the public nature of the process can be emotionally difficult for candidates, particularly because the outcome is known instantly. ‘With a secret ballot, people only learn the results later when everyone has settled down. With queue voting, everything happens there and then,’ Namukose says.
Electoral Commission implement the law
Responding to concerns about the queue voting system, Electoral Commission spokesperson Julius Mucunguzi said the Commission does not determine how LC1 elections are conducted.
‘The method of voting is not determined by the Electoral Commission,’ he says. He explains that Section 123 of the Local Government Act requires LC1 chairperson elections to be conducted by voters lining up behind their preferred candidates. ‘The Electoral Commission implements the law as enacted by Parliament. If anyone has concerns about the voting method, the appropriate institution to petition is Parliament.’
Mucunguzi says Parliament is responsible for making and amending electoral laws, while the Commission’s role is to organise elections in accordance with the law. He also defended the credibility of the process, saying the vast majority of villages completed the elections peacefully. ‘LC1 elections were conducted in 71,214 villages across the country. In 98.4 per cent of those villages, people lined up openly and transparently and elected their chairpersons without violence or major disruptions.’
According to the Commission, only about 1.6 per cent of villages experienced challenges that prevented elections from being completed on Tuesday, with repeat polls scheduled where necessary. On reports of intimidation and post-election conflict, Mucunguzi says such matters fall under the mandate of the Uganda Police Force and the courts, although the Electoral Commission also receives and investigates written complaints related to the conduct of elections. He further clarifies that the voters’ register, not the voting slip, is the primary document used to verify eligible voters before they are allowed to participate.