Oyam, Uganda | Former Oyam South parliamentary candidate Queen Dorothy Amolo has intensified her challenge to the January 15, 2026 parliamentary election results, arguing that alleged ballot irregularities were so fundamental they could warrant a court-ordered fresh election.
Amolo, in a statement issued on April 22, said she filed an election petition on March 13, with summons issued on March 16, contesting the declaration of Richard Ogwang Obura as the duly elected Member of Parliament for Oyam South.
According to official results, Obura won with 29,353 votes, followed by Geoffrey Owili (9,529), Amolo (3,516), Anthony Obuku Ekwaro (3,222), Otto Ishaa Amiza (2,083), Patrick Obong (777), Benard Awuku (455), and Odong Godfrey (202).
The petition, which names the Electoral Commission Uganda, Oyam District Returning Officer Omona Joseph, and the declared winner as respondents, accuses the electoral process of substantial non-compliance with electoral laws that allegedly affected the final outcome.
Amolo argues that the irregularities were significant enough to invalidate the entire election and potentially trigger a fresh poll.
Amolo’s central argument is that she was lawfully nominated under the name “Queen Dorothy Amolo”, yet that name did not appear on the ballot paper during the January 15, 2026 election. Instead, she claims the ballot reflected a different identity, “Queen Dorothy Alweny,” which she describes as an unauthorized or alien name not associated with her candidature.
She contends that although she was a validly nominated candidate based on official Electoral Commission records and identification, she was effectively excluded from the ballot in her correct legal name. Despite this, votes were still cast and later attributed to her, a situation she argues undermines the integrity of the entire electoral outcome.
Amolo’s petition outlines several key allegations:
▪︎ She states she was duly nominated and cleared as Queen Dorothy Amolo, supported by official documentation from the Electoral Commission.
▪︎ She alleges that the ballot paper did not reflect her nominated name but instead carried the name “Queen Dorothy Alweny,” which she says does not correspond to her legal candidacy.
▪︎ She claims that she and her agents raised objections during voting across multiple polling stations, but no corrective measures were taken.
▪︎ Despite these objections, voting proceeded across all 266 polling stations using ballot papers that did not reflect her lawful identity.
▪︎ She further alleges that votes were cast and counted under the incorrect name, rather than the name under which she was nominated.
▪︎ According to her, the Declaration of Results Forms later attributed those votes to Queen Dorothy Amolo, despite the name not appearing on the ballot.
▪︎ She argues that this created a fundamental inconsistency between the ballot identity, votes cast, and final declaration of results.
▪︎ On this basis, she accuses the Returning Officer of materially misrepresenting results by transferring votes from a non-nominated identity to her as the registered candidate.
She maintains that this chain of events effectively means she was not properly represented on the ballot, yet was still assigned votes in the final tally, raising questions about the legality and validity of the entire process.
Amolo maintains that results were declared before her complaint regarding ballot validity was resolved, which she argues renders the process null and void under the Parliamentary Elections Act.
She also states that she submitted a rejoinder after receiving responses from all respondents and that her legal team has compiled sufficient evidence to support her case, which is now awaiting allocation for hearing.
Amolo has expressed confidence that the court process will be fair and that her petition could lead to a fresh election, depending on judicial determination. However, she emphasised that she would abide by the final ruling of the court.
She also dismissed claims that she had been approached with offers to withdraw the case, insisting that her participation in politics is driven by public service rather than financial gain.
Describing the case as the only active election petition in the Lango subregion, Amolo said she expects an expedited hearing process and pledged to continue updating the public as proceedings unfold.
