The National Resistance Movement Electoral Commission has called on all party members to attend village barazas on Friday, July 10, 2026, to verify that candidates selected as NRM flag bearers for the LC I and Women Council elections are still available, alive, and willing to contest on the party ticket.
Addressing journalists at the commission headquarters in Kampala, Tanga Odoi, the NRM electoral commission chairman, described the exercise as a crucial step in implementing the party’s electoral roadmap and ensuring every village has duly verified candidates ahead of the national nomination process.
Dr. Odoi announced that the barazas will be held simultaneously in all 72,000 villages across the country, beginning at 10:00 a.m., and urged all NRM members to attend the meetings in their respective villages.
“The purpose of the baraza is to verify that the candidates who were selected as NRM flag bearers for LC I and Women Council elections are still available, alive, and willing to contest on the party ticket,” he said.
He explained that the meetings would also provide an opportunity to fill vacancies where a flag bearer has died, withdrawn from the race, or is no longer interested in contesting. In such cases, village members, under the guidance of the NRM Electoral Commission registrar, will identify a replacement through consensus. Where consensus cannot be reached, an election will be conducted.
Dr. Odoi emphasized that every village had already elected its flag bearers and clarified that the July 10 barazas are meant to validate the selected candidates rather than conduct fresh elections. However, any vacancies identified during the exercise will be filled immediately to ensure every village is represented.
Following the verification exercise, the names of all confirmed flag bearers will be forwarded to the Office of the NRM Secretary General for endorsement between July 11 and July 14, 2026. The endorsed candidates will then be nominated by the Electoral Commission at the sub-county level between July 15 and July 19, 2026.
Dr. Odoi said the party’s flag bearers will subsequently contest in the national Local Government elections organised by the Electoral Commission. The Women Council elections are scheduled for July 23, 2026, while the LC I elections will take place on July 28, 2026.
He appealed to all aspiring candidates and party members to prioritise attending the village barazas, saying the exercise is vital for strengthening the party’s grassroots structures and ensuring the NRM fields duly verified candidates across the country.
“The success of these elections begins with every member taking part in the village baraza. We call upon all NRM members to set aside whatever they are doing and attend the meetings in their respective villages at 10:00 a.m. on July 10 so that we can prepare our flag bearers for victory in the forthcoming elections,” Dr. Odoi said.
He added that the NRM Electoral Commission staff, district election officers, registrars and regional supervisors have completed preparations and will oversee the exercise to ensure a smooth, transparent and credible verification process nationwide.
