Coalition of Ethiopian Civil Society Organizations Reports High Voter Turnout, Largely Peaceful Election

Addis Ababa, June 3, 2026 —The Coalition of Ethiopian Civil Society Organizations for Elections (CECOE) said the voting process in Ethiopia’s 7th General Election reflected high voter turnout and was mostly peaceful, and conducted by election officials with high diligence in polling stations.

Briefing the media today, CECOE Board Chairperson Sahleselassie Abebe stated that the observers saw active participation of political parties, journalists, the media; and no major flaws were observed.

Coalition of the Civil Society Organizations commended Ethiopians for registering as voters and casting ballots, praising citizens for showing the initiative to line up patiently throughout the Election Day until the conclusion of the voting process.

According to the CECOE’s preliminary observation report released today, the Coalition deployed 2,506 sitting and 867 mobile observers recruited from 101 member organizations.

 

The CECOE reported that it monitored 7,723 polling stations, representing 15 percent of the 51,026 polling stations established by NEBE, using a proportional methodology based on the number of polling stations in each region.

The findings were drawn from five voting-day processes monitored at the polling station observer sites: Polling station setup and opening, voting, closing, ballot counting, and posting of results at polling station level.

According to the Coalition, most polling stations complied with election rules on setup and voting procedures.

Among the Coalition’s highlighted observations included that 99 percent of the monitored stations were established in legally permitted locations, observers able to enter and monitor without restriction at nearly all stations, with entry denied at 3 polling stations.

Voting and counting were generally not interrupted, and CECOE said violence, intimidation, or harassments were reported in only a small number of stations.

Political party representatives were present at 65 percent of the monitored polling stations, and public display of results was posted at 97 percent of polling of stations.

The CECOE, which reported no major flaws overall, pointed out to some issues requiring attention, including the establishment of polling stations in 11 prohibited places, campaigning or symbols inside or within 200 meters of 9 polling stations, and denial of observer entry at 11 stations.

 

Repeated and unauthorized assistance by individuals other than the polling station head were witnessed in 22 stations, temporary security disruptions affecting voting at 19 polling stations, as well as the presence of unauthorized individuals in 4 polling stations, the Board Chairperson said.

He also urged competing parties and the Ethiopian public to await results with patience, accept outcomes once announced by National Election Board of Ethiopia and submit any grievances through the existing legal framework.

Full details of the report will be presented in a comprehensive observation report to be released soon, it was learned.