No, you don't have to uninstall it. Did you make sure to close the Electrum before proceeding with the update? You won't be able to update it if it is running in the background.
thanks for answering. I see I did leave my electrum running while updating. this info helps a lot.
I experienced what you did before I forgot what version it is but the error is normal imo.
What you can do is uninstall and install it again like what you did. But the recommended thing to do is have at least a backup of your wallets inside the wallet folder of electrum or your recovery seed before uninstalling electrum since the entire electrum folder will be removed in the process. Also, verify the electrum software before installing it like what others repeatedly suggests.
I did some necessary precaution(but not what you mentioned) to make it is safe before uninstalling and installing electrum. thanks for telling me.