Bobi Wine placed under house arrest after Uganda vote

Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine was placed under house arrest on Friday, a day after elections that early results show President Yoweri Museveni firmly in the lead as he seeks to extend his four-decade rule. With about a quarter of the vote counted, the Electoral Commission put Museveni on 76 percent, far ahead of Wine.

The vote followed a tense campaign marked by internet shutdowns, a tactic increasingly used to stifle dissent. Museveni, once hailed as a liberator, now governs with an iron grip, as critics accuse his government of arrests, torture, and political violence.

Yet resistance is growing especially among Uganda’s young population. At the center of that movement is Bobi Wine, the 43-year-old former pop star whose message of change has electrified voters, often at great personal risk.

Election day itself was chaotic, plagued by malfunctioning biometric machines and delayed ballot deliveries in several areas, fueling opposition anger.

Final presidential and parliamentary results are expected by early Saturday, but for many Ugandans, the outcome already feels decided, even as calls for change grow louder.