KASSANDA, July 23, 2025 – The National Resistance Movement (NRM) is poised to contest itself in the upcoming Kassanda District youth council elections, following an unprecedented clean sweep of all 135 youth council positions across the district’s 12 sub-counties and three town councils on July 7, 2025.
The National Unity Platform (NUP), typically a strong contender in the region, along with other opposition parties, secured zero seats, signaling a significant shift in Kassanda’s political landscape ahead of the 2026 general elections.
The sub-county elections, conducted peacefully as confirmed by Kassanda’s Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Phoe
be Namulindwa, saw NRM dominate key areas, including Mbirizi, Myanzi, Manyogaseka, Kamuli, and Kitumbi, where it claimed every available seat. Ms Namulindwa told Watchdog news website that youth Councils were key to serving the interests of the youth and it is through them that several government programs reach that critical group.
In Kalwana Sub-County, the home base of NUP strongman Patrick Nsamba, NRM secured all nine councillor positions, leaving Nsamba’s party humiliated. Similarly, in Nalutuntu, Kassanda South MP and NUP national youth leader Frank Kabuye failed to secure any seats, with NRM taking all 36 positions. Kassanda District Woman MP Flavia Nabagabe also saw no success, as NUP’s influence collapsed district-wide.
This landslide follows NRM’s earlier triumph in the June 19 youth parish council elections, where it secured 694 out of 764 seats (90.8%) across Kassanda’s 92 parishes, leaving NUP with just 70 seats.
Political analysts attribute NRM’s dominance to its robust grassroots mobilization, bolstered by the influence of RDCs and District Internal Security Officers (DISOs), who ensured effective coordination of party activities.
Additionally, NRM’s recent party structure renewal, which revitalized village and parish-level committees, strengthened its outreach to youth voters. President Yoweri Museveni’s pledges for infrastructure improvements, including roads, electricity, and telecommunications, further resonated with rural youth.
Dr. Sarah Nakiganda, a political scientist, noted, “NRM’s revamped structures and state-backed coordination have outmaneuvered NUP’s urban-centric rhetoric, which struggles to connect with Kassanda’s rural voters.”
For NUP, the results are a dire warning. Kabuye’s “Protest Vote Campaign,” launched in June to rally youth against NRM, failed to gain traction, with critics pointing to his absence during the elections as a sign of weak leadership.
Nsamba’s defeat in Kalwana and Nabagabe’s lack of impact highlight NUP’s organizational challenges in rural areas.
Critics argue that NRM’s control over local governance, amplified by RDCs and DISOs, created an uneven playing field, raising concerns about electoral fairness.
As NRM prepares to dominate the district-level youth council elections, its unchallenged grip, strengthened by renewed party structures, positions it to shape Kassanda’s youth agenda, focusing on unemployment and education.
Meanwhile, NUP faces an uphill battle to rebuild its rural base before 2026, with analysts warning that failure to adapt could spell further electoral doom.
NRM’s 100% sweep in Kassanda’s sub-county youth elections reflects its unmatched organizational strength, amplified by the strategic influence of state structures, who ensured seamless campaign coordination, and the recent renewal of party structures, which revitalized grassroots mobilization. NUP’s complete shutout, even in strongholds like Kalwana and Nalutuntu, exposes its failure to translate 2021 parliamentary gains into rural momentum.
The absence of key NUP figures like Kabuye and the party’s urban-focused strategy have alienated rural youth, who prioritize development over protest rhetoric. However, NRM’s dominance, underpinned by state-backed structures, raises questions about electoral fairness, potentially fueling opposition discontent.
If NUP cannot counter these structural advantages and adapt its approach, NRM’s grip on the upcoming district elections and beyond seems assured, marginalizing opposition voices in Kassanda’s political future.
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