Birtukan Mideksa, the chairman of Ethiopia’s election commission, has tendered her resignation.
Ms. Birtukan stated that she was leaving her position due to health concerns in a Facebook post on Monday. The resignation still needs to be approved by Parliament.
She was a political prisoner and former judge, and her nomination more than four years ago was considered as a component of reform initiatives put forth by a new administration.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed assumed power in 2018 with a promise to put an end to decades of autocratic governance.
He said of Ms. Birtukan that she would “never surrender, even to the government” when recommending her for the crucial position of head of the electoral board.
She headed over the board that was in the spotlight because to the general elections that were supposed to take place in May 2020 but were delayed because of Covid.
The postponement of the elections, which political elites in the country’s Tigray area saw as an excuse for Prime Minister Abiy to retain power against the constitution, helped to spark a civil war that is estimated to have claimed the lives of more than 500,000 people.
The election was held nationwide a year later, with the exception of war-torn Tigray.
In a recent interview with newsmen, Ms. Birtukan stated that the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Tigray now made it impossible for elections to be held there.
Meaza Ashenafi, a different top official, resigned earlier this year. Her selection in 2018 to lead the nation’s Supreme Court was regarded as a further indication of Ethiopia’s progress toward democracy.