Ethiopia electoral board postpones sixth general elections to an undetermined date

ADDIS ABABA, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) disclosed Saturday it has decided to postpone the sixth general elections to an undetermined date.

Speaking to journalists, Chairperson of NEBE Birtukan Mideksa said repeated extensions of voters' registration dates, delay in nominating and training of electoral staff as well as delay in printing and distribution of ballots have forced postponement of the sixth general elections.

Mideksa said the new voting date will be announced soon after consultations with a wide array of electoral stakeholders.

The NEBE had previously extended the voter registration period at least two times, citing logistical and security challenges. The NEBE had tentatively set June 5 as the date for the sixth general elections.

Earlier on Saturday, the NEBE announced it had registered more than 36.2 million potential voters out of a potential voters' number of around 50 million.

Under Ethiopia's parliamentary government system, the Prime Minister who is the highest authority of the land is selected from the party that wins the most seats at federal parliament level and will be sworn in after parliamentary vote.