Ethiopia’s PM Abiy Ahmed Extends Tenure of Tigray Regional Leader

Ethiopia has extended the mandate of Tigray’s interim administrator, General Tadesse Werede, by one year, raising doubts over elections scheduled for June in the region. Tigray, which suffered a two-year conflict ending in 2022 that killed roughly 600,000 people, has not held elections since 2021. The TPLF says displaced residents must return before voting can take place, while tensions rise as federal and Tigrayan forces gather near the border.

Ethiopia on Wednesday announced the extension of the mandate of the interim administrator of the northern Tigray region by one year, a move that has cast uncertainty over the elections scheduled for June in the restive region. Tigray experienced a devastating two-year conflict that ended in 2022 with the signing of a peace agreement, which established the interim administration to oversee the region. The conflict, which pitted Tigrayan rebels against federal forces, claimed an estimated 600,000 lives and caused widespread disruption across the region.
The war also disrupted legislative and regional elections in 2021, prompting the federal government to appoint veteran Tigray politician Getachew Reda to head the interim administration. However, Getachew faced increasing opposition from within the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and was replaced in April of the previous year by Tigrayan General Tadesse Werede. According to the head of the Ethiopian executive, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has now extended the mandate of General Tadesse Werede by one year, effective from April 9, 2026.
This extension raises significant questions about the feasibility of holding the elections scheduled for June 1, during which Tigray was set to elect leaders to its local parliament and government, as well as representatives to the federal parliament. Because no elections have taken place in the region since 2021, Tigrayan legislators have not participated in sessions of the federal parliament for several years.
The TPLF has stated that a key condition for holding elections is the return of approximately one million people who remain displaced, out of Tigray’s estimated six million residents, as a result of the 2020–2022 conflict. In recent weeks, both federal troops and Tigrayan forces have been massed along the Tigray border, raising tensions in the area. The federal authorities have also expressed concerns that the TPLF is increasingly aligning with neighboring Eritrea, which maintains fragile relations with Addis Ababa. The TPLF has denied these claims.