The High Court has nullified the election of two Members of Parliament in Bugweri and Mubende districts following separate election petitions challenging the outcomes of the January 2026 general elections.
In Iganga, Justice Simon Peter Kinobe nullified the election of independent candidate Stella Maris Nankwanga as Bugweri District Woman MP over failure to meet the required academic qualifications at the time of nomination, declaring her rival, Alliance for National Transformation (ANT) candidate Aminah Mutesi Nalugoda, the duly elected representative.
In a separate ruling delivered on Friday at the High Court in Mubende, Justice Mary Babirye nullified the election of National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate Dedan Mubangizi as Buweekula South MP and ordered the Electoral Commission to conduct a fresh election.
The two decisions mark significant developments in the growing wave of post-election legal battles arising from the 2026 parliamentary elections.
In the Bugweri case, Justice Kinobe found that Nankwanga did not possess the requisite academic qualifications when she was nominated, rendering her election invalid.
The ruling overturned the Electoral Commission’s declaration of Nankwanga as the winner and handed Nalugoda a major legal victory after she challenged the election outcome.
Nalugoda filed Election Petition No. 2 of 2026 on March 5, naming Nankwanga and the Electoral Commission as respondents and challenging the validity of her rival’s academic qualifications.
Earlier, on March 17, Justice David Batema allowed Nalugoda to serve Nankwanga with the election petition through a newspaper advertisement after attempts to effect personal service had failed.
The latest judgment marks a breakthrough for Nalugoda, who has previously contested the Bugweri Woman MP seat.
During the 2021 general elections, she contested on the ANT ticket and finished third with 13,084 votes. Rachel Magoola of the NRM won with 15,739 votes, while Mercy Walukamba of the National Unity Platform (NUP) came second with 14,198 votes, according to Electoral Commission results.
The three politicians returned to the electoral contest in 2026, alongside Nankwanga, who was declared the winner before her victory was challenged in court.
Nankwanga’s election had displaced Magoola, the celebrated singer popularly known as Obangaina, who had represented Bugweri District in Parliament.
In the Buweekula South case, Justice Babirye ruled in favour of independent candidate Fred Tumwesigye, who had challenged Mubangizi’s victory following a controversial recount that reversed the initial election results.
The dispute began after Mubende District Returning Officer Ferdinand Tumwesigye Mulekezi declared Tumwesigye the winner with 8,804 votes against Mubangizi’s 7,998. NUP candidate Edward Ssempiira came third with 1,917 votes.
Mubangizi subsequently challenged the results and secured a recount at the Mubende Chief Magistrate’s Court.
The recount, conducted in January 2026, reversed the initial outcome, with Mubangizi declared the winner after obtaining 7,908 votes, while Tumwesigye garnered 7,504 votes. Ssempiira received 1,878 votes.
Dissatisfied with the outcome, Tumwesigye pursued further legal action, seeking to overturn the recount and reclaim the parliamentary seat.
In February 2026, High Court Judge Bonny Isaac Teko dismissed Tumwesigye’s application for revision, finding no illegality or material irregularity in the manner the Chief Magistrate’s Court had conducted the recount.
Tumwesigye later pursued a substantive election petition before Justice Babirye, seeking to have Mubangizi’s election nullified.
The latest ruling has now set aside Mubangizi’s election and directed that voters in Buweekula South return to the polls to elect their representative.
The two judgments underscore the critical role of the courts in resolving electoral disputes and determining whether candidates elected during the 2026 polls met the legal requirements for office and whether the electoral process complied with the law.
