For the first time since coming to power 19 years ago, Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and his ruling coalition are facing an electoral challenge in their Tigray stronghold.

While there is little doubt Ethiopia's 55-year-old strongman will retain his job after Sunday's legislative elections, the heartland of the rebellion he joined when he was 20 is not as united as it once was.

In Mekelle, the capital of the northern region of Tigray, monuments to the fighters from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) who fought against the regime of Mengistu Haile Mariam abound.

Life-size statues of men and women holding fire arms and riding on tanks surround the city's best-known landmark, a monument topped by a bronze sphere that towers over the skyline.

The TPLF and Meles came to power in 1991. In its time as a rebel group it enjoyed almost unanimous support here.

But this time around Meles and his supporters from the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) coalition will come up against some of their former comrades-in-arms, a number of them even blood-related.

"Our families are very close with each other. We have a long history dating back to our grandfathers and grandmothers," said Aregash Adane, who is running for her Arena Tigray party against Meles in his hometown of Adwa.

Arena Tigray was formed two years ago by disgruntled former EPRDF members who accuse Meles of "betraying the cause" by imposing dictatorial rule.

"We weren't going the way we were supposed to go in terms of democratic transformation. The country is now led by a one-man, one-party regime," Awalom Woldu, a former ambassador to Eritrea, told AFP.



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