Ethiopia Fixes June 21 for Delayed Elections

Ethiopia’s national electoral board has announced June 21 as the new date for the delayed parliamentary elections.

The country was initially due to vote in August 2020, but the ballot was postponed to June 5, 2021, owing to Covid-19 pandemic factors.

According to the revised schedule, voting will take place after June 21 in some areas for security reasons and to allow more time for voters to register.

Earlier this month, the electoral board said it had registered 31.7 million voters out of a target of 50 million of Ethiopia’s 110 million people.

The delays heightened tensions with regional leaders in Tigray, who disputed the legitimacy of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government after its mandate expired in October. Tigray’s leaders held their own unauthorized poll in that region, provoking the government.