Preliminary reports published by the African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) following the conclusion of Ethiopia's seventh national elections on Monday cite disparate voter statistics.

While IGAD, which dispatched a team of more than two dozen experts to observe the election, asserts 54 million Ethiopian citizens had registered for the vote, the AU puts the figure at 50.5 million.

To make matters more complicated, EnatalemMeles, head of the Ethiopian Government Communication Service, told Al Jazeera the number of voters going to polls stood at 57 million.

The AU report further states the National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) had initially targeted 40 million voters.

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The two organizations also differed in their reporting of the number of political parties that took part in the polls. IGAD put the number at 42, including coalitions, while the AU cited 47 parties.

The AU observer mission, headed by former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, noted that voting did not take place in Tigray and parts of the Oromia and Amhara regions due to prevailing security and operational challenges. On the other hand, the IGAD mission only highlighted security challenges in the Amhara region.

The AU report further stated that "special voting arrangements for members of the military, security services and internally displaced persons (IDPs) are scheduled for 8 June 2026." The NEBE has not made any announcements regarding separate dates for specially designated polling stations or a separate date for security personnel. Electoral officials have instead stated that nearly all registered voters have cast their ballots.

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The AU mission cited insecurity as the cause for inactivity at 6,400 polling stations across 46 constituencies; circumstances it says "limited access to registration services for some communities."