The High Court in Masaka has dismissed an election petition filed by Nalubowa Rose challenging Justine Nameere’s victory in the January 2026 election for Masaka City Woman Representative to Parliament, ruling that the petitioner failed to prove that the disputed results were erroneous.
In a judgment delivered on October 21, 2026, Justice Bernard Namanya dismissed the petition and ordered Nalubowa to pay the costs of the case.
The court found that although the vote recount was conducted in breach of electoral law after the integrity of several election materials had been compromised, Nalubowa had not demonstrated that the results certified by the Chief Magistrate were incorrect.
The petition arose from the January 15, 2026 election, in which Nalubowa was initially declared the winner with 25,443 votes against Nameere’s 20,324.
However, following an application by Nameere alleging that results from 11 polling stations had been omitted from the final declaration, the Chief Magistrate ordered a recount that reversed the outcome.
The recount certificate showed Nameere with 25,502 votes, Nalubowa with 23,176, Juliet Kakande with 6,136 and Nanyonga Sauya with 5,921, leading to Nameere being declared the winner.
Nalubowa subsequently challenged the outcome, arguing, among other issues, that the recount process did not comply with electoral law and that 1,353 valid votes had been excluded.
In its assessment, the court held that Nalubowa had failed to prove that the exclusion of the 1,353 votes substantially affected the election results.
Justice Namanya noted that even if all the disputed votes had been added to Nalubowa’s certified tally of 23,176, her total would have risen to 24,529, still 973 votes short of Nameere’s 25,502.
The judge consequently rejected the prayers to overturn the election and declare Nalubowa the duly elected winner.
The dismissal leaves Nameere’s victory intact, with Nalubowa ordered to bear the costs of the petition.
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