As Campaigns End Today, EC Warns LC1 Candidates Against Violence and Late Campaigning

KAMPALA — The Electoral Commission has warned candidates, agents and supporters participating in the Local Council I chairperson elections against violating campaign guidelines, engaging in violence or conducting campaign activities beyond the official deadline.

The warning was issued by Electoral Commission spokesperson Julius Mucunguzi as campaigns for candidates contesting for Local Council I (LC1) chairperson positions across the country officially conclude today, Monday, July 27, 2026.

Mucunguzi said campaigns will officially close at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, urging all candidates and their supporters to strictly observe the deadline and refrain from any form of campaigning after the stipulated time.

“The Commission would like to inform all of you that, as you know, campaigns end at 6 p.m. So the last rally during these campaigns that end today is at 6 p.m. today, the 27th of July, 2026,” Mucunguzi said.

He warned that no candidate, agent or supporter should continue campaigning beyond the 6:00 p.m. deadline, stressing that the Commission would treat the matter seriously.

The Electoral Commission spokesperson also reminded candidates and their supporters that campaign activities are prohibited in certain locations, including schools, hospitals and markets.

Mucunguzi further cautioned candidates against conducting campaign processions outside the villages where they are contesting, saying campaigns should remain restricted to the respective villages in which candidates are registered voters and seeking election.

“The Commission already informed you that campaigns should be restricted within the village where you are a candidate. In other words, no candidate is expected or allowed to have processions of campaigns outside the village within which that person, that candidate is contesting,” he said.

He explained that the restriction was intended to prevent clashes between supporters of candidates from different villages, particularly where campaign processions could move from one area into another.

The Commission appealed to candidates, agents and supporters to maintain peace and avoid confrontations as the country prepares for the LC1 elections scheduled for Tuesday, July 28, 2026.

Mucunguzi said peaceful conduct was essential to ensuring that the elections are credible, free, fair and conducted in a tranquil environment.

“The Commission appeals for peaceful conduct because peace is a very important prerequisite for a credible, peaceful, tranquil, free and fair election,” he said.

He urged supporters not to engage in violent acts or allow political differences to turn into personal enmity, reminding voters that the elections are intended to choose leaders at the grassroots level.

“Differences in the people that voters support should not become a ground of enmity, even as the campaigns are concluding,” Mucunguzi said.

The Electoral Commission also reminded the public that polling for LC1 chairpersons and their committees will take place on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, across the country.

Mucunguzi expressed appreciation to the government for declaring July 28 a public holiday, saying the decision would give workers and other eligible voters an opportunity to participate in the elections.

He called upon all registered voters in the country's 71,214 villages to wake up early on polling day and go to their respective polling places to participate in the election of their LC1 chairpersons.

The Commission urged voters to take the elections seriously and participate fully in the process, including the approval of nominations by elected LC1 chairpersons for members of their respective village committees.

Mucunguzi said the participation of citizens in the elections would enable communities to constitute leadership at the grassroots level and complete the country's local leadership structures.

The LC1 chairperson elections are expected to mark a significant step in the constitution of village-level leadership across Uganda, with the Electoral Commission calling on all stakeholders to uphold the law and ensure that the electoral process is conducted peacefully.

As the campaign period comes to an end, the Commission has reiterated its call for restraint, urging candidates and their supporters to accept the outcome of the democratic process and maintain peaceful relations regardless of the candidates they support.

The Commission further encouraged voters to exercise their right to choose leaders of their preference while observing all electoral laws and guidelines governing the Local Council elections.