Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed Set for Another Term After Landslide Election Win

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is set to secure another term in office after his ruling Prosperity Party recorded a commanding victory in the country’s general election.

Official results showed the Prosperity Party won 438 of the 501 parliamentary seats contested in the June 1 election, giving it nearly 90 per cent of the seats and comfortably surpassing the 274-seat threshold required for a majority in parliament.

The outcome clears the way for Abiy, who first assumed office in 2018, to remain prime minister when the new government is constituted. The 49-year-old leader is expected to be sworn in for another term in early October.

More than 50 million Ethiopians registered to vote in the election, underscoring the significance of the poll in Africa’s second-most populous nation.

However, voting did not take place in several parts of the country due to ongoing security concerns and political instability.

The country’s electoral commission, the National Election Board of Ethiopia, said elections could not be conducted in parts of the northern Tigray Region because of what it described as “unfavourable conditions” stemming from the civil conflict that ravaged the region between 2020 and 2022.

The election marks another major political milestone for Abiy, whose tenure has been defined by ambitious reforms, regional conflicts and efforts to stabilise one of Africa’s most influential nations.

Despite the landslide victory, the absence of voting in some areas is likely to keep questions about national unity, security and political inclusion at the forefront of Ethiopia’s political discourse.