Q&A: Uganda votes

President Museveni is seeking a third term in office

Voters in the east African country of Uganda go to the polls on Thursday to elect a new president and parliament.

These are the first multi-party elections for 26 years as all candidates used to stand as individuals - not representatives of a party.

Q: How does Uganda's political system work?

President Yoweri Museveni introduced the one party "movement" system of government when he seized power in 1986. It was a unique political system to try and prevent the chaos and ethnic conflicts that plagued Uganda throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. Although political parties were allowed to exist, they were severely restricted and could not participate in elections. But in a 2005 referendum, Ugandans voted to return to full multi-party politics.

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Presidency: The president holds executive power and is elected for a five-year term. In mid-2005 parliament voted to abolish limits on presidential terms that would have prevented President Museveni from standing for a third term.

Parliament: Almost 1,000 candidates are vying for parliamentary seats in the single-chamber parliament.

Two hundred and fourteen MPs are elected to represent the country's constituencies. On the same day Ugandans will also vote for seats held by female MPs representing each of the 69 districts.

Seats are also reserved in parliament for other special interest groups, such as the army, youth, labour and people with disabilities.

Q: Who is standing for president?

President Yoweri Museveni of the ruling National Resistance Movement - Organisation is seeking his third term in office. Until a few years ago he was lauded as one of Africa's "new breed of leaders" owing to the economic and political reforms he introduced.

Dr Besigye was once President Museveni's personal physician

But severe restrictions on opposition parties and the media in recent years have raised serious concerns about the state of democracy. Critics also accuse Mr Museveni of being unwilling to stamp out high-level corruption.

The leader of the opposition Forum for Democratic Change, Dr Kizza Besigye, is challenging President Museveni for the second time and is seen as his main rival. Since returning from four years of self-imposed exile last October, he has been charged by the state with treason, terrorism and rape offences.

He denies them all and maintains they are politically motivated attempts to prevent him from standing. On 15 February, a court adjourned his treason trial until after the elections, leaving him free to campaign.

Also competing for the presidency are John Ssebaana Kizito of the Democratic Party, Miria Obote of the Uganda People's Congress party and the independent Abed Bwanika.

Q: Which parties are contesting the poll?

Four groups are taking part: The ruling National Resistance Movement - Organisation, the Forum for Democratic Change, the Uganda People's Congress and the Democratic Party.

Q: What are the main issues?

• The northern rebellion

  The rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) led by Joseph Kony has waged war in northern Uganda for nearly two decades. Violence against civilians has led to displacement of more than 1.6m people and tens of thousands have been killed or kidnapped. The region is an economic wasteland.

  It has been an issue at the last two elections without being resolved, although the army recently has claimed to have the LRA on the run.

• Economic management

  Uganda's economic growth rate has been President Museveni's trump card over the past 20 years, but the elections come at a time when several donor countries have withheld crucial budgetary support.

  As Uganda's budget is funded from abroad to the tune of 41%, the country has begun to feel the pinch.

• International relations

  Uganda remains a key player in regional politics owing to President Museveni's "Pan-African" outlook. But critics have said this policy has led to costly regional wars, especially in the Great Lakes region.

  The International Court of Justice recently ruled that Uganda must pay compensation to the Democratic Republic of Congo for looting during the 1998-2003 war.

• Democracy

  According to observers, Uganda is slipping in democracy rankings, with harassment of opposition leaders and groups, a media crackdown and abuse of civil rights on the rise.

  Relations between Uganda and key Western donors are at their lowest ebb. Countries such as Sweden, Ireland and Norway have cited governance problems and a rise in defence spending as the cause.

Q: What will happen on election day?

Around 10.4m Ugandans are registered to vote at almost 20,000 polling stations across the country, with booths scheduled to remain open between 0700 and 1700 local time (0400-1400 GMT).

Each voter will receive three ballot papers: one for president; one for constituency MP; one for district female representative in parliament.

Q: Will the polls be free and fair?

The New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report released on 13 February that the run-up to the polls had "been marred by intimidation of the opposition, military interference in the courts and bias in campaign funding and media coverage".

The government dismissed the report as "absolutely biased" and an attempt to influence the outcome of the polls.

Q: Has the election campaign been peaceful?

Compared to five years ago, this campaign has been relatively peaceful. The 2001 campaign was tainted by incidents of violence carried out by the security forces.

But the BBC's Will Ross in the capital, Kampala, says the killing of at least two of Dr Besigye's supporters as they celebrated a court decision to adjourn his treason trial until after the election is likely to raise tensions.

Q: Who is likely to win?

Recent opinion polls suggest a neck-and-neck race between Dr Besigye and President Museveni. One poll, published in Uganda's Weekly Observer on 16 February, puts the opposition candidate ahead in three of Uganda's five regions.

If neither man takes more than 50% of the ballot, a run-off will be held within 30 days.

Q: How soon will the results be known?

It is unclear when the results will be announced, but in 2001 the results were declared within 48 hours.

Q: Are there any international observers?

The Commonwealth, the African Union, the East African Community and the European Union have all sent teams to monitor the polls.

BBC Monitoring selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaus abroad.