Ethiopians started voting on Sunday in national and regional elections, the country’s first polls since the 2012 death of its leader, and the ruling party is expected to maintain its iron-clad grip on power.
More than 38 million voters were registered to vote in this East African nation of about 90 million people. Some opposition groups threatened to boycott the vote, saying their members are being harassed and detained charges the government denies.
Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, a former university professor-turned-politician, has been leading the country since the death of strongman Meles Zenawi, who built the ruling coalition into a powerful political organisation.
Ethiopia is a federal parliamentary republic and the party or coalition that wins the most seats in the 547-seat Parliament will form the next Government. All parliament seats are being voted on Sunday.