Rukungiri District recorded a low voter turnout in the LC5 chairperson general elections, with the majority of registered voters failing to cast their ballots.
Official figures indicate that the district has 206,266 registered voters. However, only 78,894 people, representing 38.2 percent, participated in the election, while 127,372 voters, about 61.8 percent of the electorate, did not turn up.
Charles Andrewson Katebite was declared the new LC5 Chairperson for Rukungiri District after securing 40,946 votes, representing 52.44 percent of the total votes cast.
Independent candidate Angelo Twinomuhagi Bagorogoza finished second with 20,934 votes, equivalent to 26.81 percent, while Hillary Ainembazi of the People's Front for Freedom (PFF) came third with 16,196 votes, accounting for 20.74 percent.
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Overall, fewer than four in ten registered voters participated in the election, leaving more than half of the electorate absent from the polls.
Commenting on the low turnout, Nyakishenyi Sub-county LC3 Chairperson Wednesday Twinomujuni attributed the situation partly to the imprisonment of Dr Kizza Besigye, saying some opposition supporters opted to boycott the polls in protest.
"Some opposition supporters chose to boycott the elections in protest against the detention of their leader," Twinomujuni said.
He further noted that some residents believed the elections would not have a meaningful impact on their lives and therefore chose to stay home and attend to their daily work.
He encouraged those who did not vote to reconsider their stance, stressing that elections give citizens an opportunity to choose leaders who can improve service delivery in sectors such as health, education, and transport.
Rwakabengo Ward's elected Municipal Councillor, Patrick Natukunda, said fear of job loss discouraged some voters, particularly those employed by others, from participating in the polls.
"Long distances to polling stations and work-related obligations, especially for people employed far from their homes, also contributed to the low turnout," Natukunda said.
Natukunda urged the government to shorten the election period, arguing that a single voting day would allow workers to request time off more easily and could help improve voter participation in future elections.
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