Ruptly
"Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed cast his ballot in Jimma Zone, Oromia Region, on Monday, warning of alleged interference in the national election by external forces. Footage shows the prime minister arriving at a polling station, completing registration, entering the voting booth, and casting his ballot. "In order to prevent the election from going smoothly as planned, Ethiopia's historical enemies have deployed their forces; they have carried out propaganda; they have tried to make us believe that democratic elections are not possible in Ethiopia," Ahmed told reporters after the vote. "However, the Ethiopian people [...] have shown the great spirit of heroism and have been holding the election in all the streets I have come to since morning," he continued. "They do not need a mentor or a guide to build their state [...] and to decide what they want to build in Ethiopia." The remarks follow the National Election Board of Ethiopia's (NEBE) decision to exclude 46 of 176 constituencies from Monday's vote due to ongoing conflict, including all 38 in Tigray, eight in Amhara, and localised disruptions in Oromia. In total, 143 stations were unable to operate out of over 50,000 locations across the country, according to media reports. Ahmed also referenced past elections in the Horn of Africa, noting a possible re-vote for those unable to participate. "The people will express their needs; if it's convenient for them tomorrow, then all these voters got up in the morning and lined up for a fee," he explained. According to the NEBE, more than 50 million people have registered to vote out of a population of around 130 million, with voters electing 500 members of the House of Peoples' Representatives as well as regional and city council representatives. Under Ethiopia's parliamentary system, the party winning a legislative majority selects the prime minister. Ahmed, in power for eight years, leads the Prosperity Party, which has governed since 2019 after succeeding the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), the ruling coalition from 1991 to 2018."
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