On January 22 2021, Nyanzi asked the Mengo Chief Magistrates Court to order for a vote recount but the Chief Magistrate Esther Nansambu dismissed his application six days later. Nansambu reasoned that Nyanzi was raising matters of electoral offenses which would only be determined by the high Court which has jurisdiction to entertain such.
Fred Nyanzi who was contesting on the National Unity Platform-NUP ticket petitioned the court seeking vote recounting after citing several irregularities in the declaration of result forms.
In the petition, Nyanzi states that the process and counting of the votes were marred by malpractices and irregularities committed by both the Electoral Commission officials and Nsereko's agents.