Ethiopia's First Post‑War Election Amid Ethnic Conflict
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- Ethiopia will hold nationwide elections on 1 June 2026, the first since the Tigray war ended in 2022.
- National Election Board of Ethiopia notes that more than 50.5 million voters have registered for the vote.
- Prosperity Party led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed controls 457 of the 547 parliamentary seats.
- Ethiopia is home to over 80 ethnic groups, with the Oromo comprising about 35 % of the population, Amhara 24 %, Somali 7 %, Tigrayan 6 % and Sidama 4 %.
- ACLED recorded over 7,400 attacks across Ethiopia between Jan 2022 and May 2026, with the Amhara region accounting for 3,719 attacks, Oromia 2,735, Tigray 262 and Gambela 144.
- IMF projects a 9.2 % GDP expansion for Ethiopia in 2026, the highest on the continent, despite high inflation and post‑war reconstruction costs.
Why it matters: The June vote will cement Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s grip on power, as his Prosperity Party already dominates parliament, while the high‑frequency attacks—especially in Amhara and Oromia—underscore security risks that could undermine the IMF‑projected 9.2 % growth and strain reconstruction budgets.
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