Many ministers in the National Resistance Movement (NRM) have faced huge defeats in the party’s Special Interest Groups elections that were held on Monday Night, showing a slight shift in the power dynamics ahead of the 2026 General Elections.
Among those who lost include Security Minister Maj. Gen. (retired) Jim Muhwezi lost the chairmanship of the NRM Veterans League to Moses Mushabe, the incumbent NRM chairman for the Isingiro District. Mushabe secured 1,047 votes against Muhwezi’s 570, ending the veteran minister’s long dominance in party veterans’ politics. Other contestants, Titus Erisa Kiwanuka and Jackson Walusimbi, received 11 and 7 votes.
Jim Muhwezi is one of the longest-serving ministers in the ruling government and has held big cabinet positions, including Health and Information positions.
According to our sources, they have it that Jim Muhwezi’s defeat is a sign of generational change within the veterans’ ranks and growing discontent among grassroots delegates.
In the same contest, the Minister of State for the Elderly, Dominic Mafabi Gidudu, represented older persons from Eastern Uganda in Parliament, lost the ticket to Ofwono Opondo, the former executive director of the Uganda Media Centre.
Speaking about his double defeat, Gidudu said he respected the delegates’ choice. “Internally, I may have my own opinion about how things turned out, but after all, this is one party, and its collective decision has to stand,” he said.
Some party insiders view the defeats as a reflection of growing volatility within the NRM, with delegates increasingly ready to punish incumbents accused of complacency or losing touch with their constituencies.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, Col. (Rtd) Tom Butime, successfully retained his seat as chairman of the NRM Historical Leaders’ Forum.
 have faced huge defeats in the party's Special Interest Groups elections .){kind=link}