Uganda
Following the 2011 elections in Uganda, citizens demonstrated increased interest in engaging the political process, including by participating in more street-level demonstrations and protests than at any time in recent history.
National Election 2016
As the country prepared for the 2016 general election period, CSOs and political parties continued to advocate for more representative political systems that would allow for enhanced participation and increased accountability.
The Citizens’ Election Observation Network-Uganda (CEON-U), a citizen election observer coalition of local CSOs, monitored the 2016 electoral process in Uganda between September, 2015 and June 2016, covering the pre-election, election day and post-election periods. Overall, few observers reported witnessing or hearing reports of violence against women in the pre-election period. On election day, of the incidents of violence that were reported, observers reported more incidents of violence against voters than against any other group.
CEON-U and the CSO members of the coalition worked to engage citizens at the local level as part of their public outreach, complementing the work CEON-U undertook to monitor the electoral processes.
BEFORE THE ELECTION
CEON-U included specific questions about VAW-E in their systematic long term observation in the pre-electoral period of Uganda's 2015 elections.
Over 200 observers were deployed throughout the country, and reported their findings every week for several months, giving a great depth to the data collected. Several specific questions about VAW-E were part of this observation and reporting, including the following: Have you witnessed or heard of hate speech, violence or intimidation against candidates or their supporters because they are women?
CEON also disaggregated other questions about electoral violence by gender. While few observers reported witnessing or hearing reports of violence against poll officials, for example, the reported violent incidents in the pre-election period targeting election officials affected an equal percentage of men and women observers
Have you witnessed or heard of attacks or intimidation of election officials?
98% of CEON-U’s observers reported that they had not witnessed or heard of any attacks against election officials, including acts of intimidation.
Have you witnessed or heard of hate speech, violence or intimidation against candidates or their supporters because they are women?
CEON-U trained observers to report on hate speech, violence and intimidation against women candidates and their supporters. Of the reports received, only 8% of observers reported any acts of this gender-based violence.
ELECTION DAY
As part of their monitoring efforts, observers monitored reports of attacks on or intimidation of election officials, disaggregating the data by gender.
Observers who were part of CEON's observation on election day observed more incidents of violence against voters than against any other group, although election officials were also a significant portion of victims of observed incidents of violence. Of the types of violent incidents that were observed, there were some differences between whether victims were men, women, or involved victims of both genders. Overwhelmingly, perpetrators of violent incidents were men.
Uganda Election Day Gender Demographics
One question that CEON’s observers were asked to report on was the breakdown of polling officials by gender: 27% of the officials at the polling stations observed were women.
Uganda Incidents of Violence at the National Level
Of the incidents that were reported by observers, 38% targeted voters, while 31% were against election officials, 23% were against party agents, and 8% were against observers.
Uganda Election Day Victims
Of the reported incidents of violence, men were more likely to be targeted by harassment and violence than women; while women were more likely than men to be targeted by impersonation. In all categories, mixed-gender groups were the most frequently targeted.
Uganda Election Day Perpetrators
Of the incidents of violence that were reported by observers, the perpetrators were most likely to be men, regardless of the type of violence observed.
ABOUT THE OBSERVATION
In its pre-election observation, CEON-U deployed 223 long-term observers in all 112 districts of Uganda. These observers reported every week for several months, giving a wide span of longitudinal data. In total, CEON-U deployed 900 observers, with 700 participating in the election day observation.
Other countries
The Votes Without Violence project, initially developed by the National Democratic Institute, has examined violence against women in elections in the following countries. You can view each country's data individually or check out our cross-country analysis.
Burma
Burma/Myanmar’s 2015 national elections were the first in many years, and an important milestone in the country’s ongoing reform process. More than 23 million citizens voted, many casting a vote for the first time.
Cote D'Ivoire
Contested claims of victory during Côte d’Ivoire’s 2010 presidential election—the first in a decade—triggered widespread post-election violence, in which women were often the first victims.
Ghana
Since 1992, Ghana has held relatively peaceful and credible national elections every four years.
Guatemala
Guatemala has one of the highest rates of violence and violent crime in the region. Even without additional political tensions, Guatemalans face widespread gang violence, extortion and widespread impunity. The country also has the third-highest rate of femicide in the world.
Kenya
For the first time in its history, Kenya elected women Senators and Governors since the promulgation of the 2010 constitution. Women’s representation in parliament also increased by six from 16 in 2013 to 22 in the 2017 elections.
Liberia
Following the 12 year presidency of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first elected female Head of State in Africa, there was only a marginal increase in female candidates during the general elections in Liberia in 2017. Only 16% of approved candidates were women (from 14% in 2011), including one running for president.
Nicaragua
Nicaragua ranks as one of the most gender-equal countries in the world, with nearly 50 percent women in its parliament. However, barriers to women’s participation continue to persist.
Nigeria
Although limited data has been collected regarding gender based electoral violence in Nigeria, it is widely acknowledged by the Nigerian population and the international community that women were disproportionately victimized by the electoral violence surrounding elections in 2011.
Tanzania
For several years, women’s rights activists, academics and experts in Tanzania have been raising awareness and working to end “sextortion,” in which women who seek election or nomination face the extortion of sexual favors within their own political parties by party leaders.
Timor Leste
The 2017 national parliamentary elections in Timor Leste were the first sovereign administered national elections since the country achieved full independence from Indonesia in 2001. The elections were peaceful and by all accounts well administered, which is a great achievement for the country.