Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s Prosperity Party (see note 1) won an overwhelming majority, taking 448 seats in the 547-member House of Peoples' Representatives in the delayed elections held amid war in the Tigray region (see note 2). The elections were boycotted by some prominent opposition parties (see note 3). Several other opposition parties, which contested the 2021 elections, including the Ethiopian Citizens for Social Justice (EZEMA, led by Mr. Berhanu Nega), complained about the electoral process. The African Union election observer mission described the election as "credible".



The 2021 elections were the first to be held after Mr. Abiy Ahmed assumed the premiership in 2018. Being 41 at the time, he became Africa’s youngest leader. As the country's first ethnic Oromo leader in recent years, Mr. Abiy Ahmed promised reforms and backed the election (by Parliament) of Ms. Sahle-Work Zewde as the country’s new President in October 2018. In 2019 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to resolve the border conflict with Eritrea. 



During the election campaign, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ran on the government record, citing the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), Africa's largest hydroelectric power plant, which straddles the Blue Nile River on Ethiopia's north-western border with Sudan. The government stated that the GERD was crucial for the development of the country which aimed to become a major power exporter. However, the GERD led to tensions with nearby countries, especially Egypt and Sudan, which also depend on the Nile for fresh water supplies. 



Note 1:

In April 2018, Mr. Abiy Ahmed succeeded Mr. Hailemariam Desalegn of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) who had resigned following anti government protests initially led by the country’s largest ethnic group, the Oromo. In November 2019, Mr. Abiy Ahmed dissolved the EPRDF, which had been in power since 1991 and was dominated by the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), and formed the Prosperity Party in December 2019. The TPLF rejected the Prime Minister’s decision to dissolve the EPRDF and refused to join the Prosperity Party. 



Note 2:

In August 2020, citing the COVID-19 pandemic, the Prime Minister postponed by 10 months the parliamentary and regional elections initially scheduled for 29 August 2020. Opposition parties accused the government of using the pandemic as an excuse to illegally extend its time in office (which was due to expire in October 2020), an allegation the government denied. 

The TPLF held regional elections in the Tigray region on 9 September 2020 and won in a landslide. On 7 October, the House of the Federation (upper chamber comprising members of state assemblies) stated that the federal government should sever all ties with the Tigray regional state assembly. On 4 November, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed ordered the federal forces into Tigray accusing the TPLF of launching an attack to take over the Northern Command of Ethiopia’s military. Although the Prime Minister declared the end of military operations on 29 November, the war in Tigray continued throughout the 2021 elections. Also, some TPLF leaders were arrested. Among them was the former Speaker of the House of the Federation, Ms. Keria Ibrahim who was arrested in December 2020 but released on bail in March 2021. On 1 May, the government designated the TPLF as a “terrorist” organization.

Following the first postponement mentioned above, the 2021 elections were subsequently set for 5 June 2021. However, on 15 May, they were postponed again to 21 June due to security and logistical challenges. The June 2021 elections were held for 436 seats (for the 547-seat House) of which 425 were confirmed. Elections were not held for 111 constituencies (including 38 in Tigray) due to security reasons. Repeated elections for 11 undecided seats and fresh elections for most of the 111 seats were initially announced for 6 September but delayed to 30 September. No date has been set for elections in the Tigray region where the conflict is ongoing.



Note 3:

Several opposition parties announced their boycott in protest of the jailing of their leaders and over other concerns regarding the fairness of the process. Among them were the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) and the Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC).