National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate James Leku Pilli has been declared the new Member of Parliament for Adjumani West Constituency after winning Thursday’s parliamentary by-election.
Leku Pilli secured 12,423 votes, defeating his sole challenger, independent candidate Gasper Draga, who obtained 2,559 votes.
Adjumani Electoral District Returning Officer Akao Eunice Christine declared Leku Pilli elected at 8:31pm at Adjumani District Council Hall after tallying results from all 114 polling stations.
According to the Electoral Commission’s final results, 14,982 valid votes were cast. The Commission also recorded 234 rejected ballot papers and 19 spoilt ballots.
Leku Pilli’s victory fills the parliamentary vacancy created by the death of former Adjumani West MP Gen. (Rtd) Moses Ali, who died on July 18, 2026.
The by-election had initially attracted four candidates — Ben Anyama, Gasper Draga, James Leku Pilli and Patrick Tandrupasi. However, Anyama and Tandrupasi withdrew from the race, leaving Leku Pilli and Draga as the final contestants.
During the campaign, Leku Pilli highlighted infrastructure and urban development priorities, including the proposed construction of Laropi Bridge, upgrading Adjumani Town Council to municipality status and improving Ciforo Health Centre III to a Health Centre IV.
Draga, on the other hand, campaigned on education, skills development and commercial agriculture, with a focus on improving employment opportunities and household incomes.
Meanwhile, the Uganda Human Rights Commission said voting was generally peaceful, with election materials arriving on time at most polling stations and biometric voter verification systems largely functioning.
However, UHRC observer Crispin Kaheru noted low voter turnout at several polling stations by the close of voting at 4pm.
The Electoral Commission had registered 51,437 voters for the by-election across 114 polling stations covering Adjumani Town Council and the sub-counties of Pachara, Adropi, Ciforo and Ukusijoni.