Zambians await election result as president bids for second term

Counting is under way in Zambia after voting closed on Thursday in the general election where President Hakainde Hichilema was seeking a second five-year term.

Despite steering Zambia through an economic rebound Hichilema faced a challenge as many people have said their circumstances have not improved. His main rival, Brian Mundubile, hoped to capitalise on that dissatisfaction.

Unemployment and the rising cost of living were major issues for voters.

In order to win outright in the first round a presidential candidate needs more than half the votes cast, otherwise a run-off election is triggered. The electoral commission has until the end of Sunday to announce the outcome.

Polling day was largely peaceful, with queues reported in many areas and only isolated delays. Along with electing a president, the more than eight million registered voters had the chance to elect a new parliament and local councils.

Thursday’s vote was seen as a test of Zambia’s reputation as one of Africa’s most stable democracies, amid concerns that political freedoms are being undermined.

Queues were seen at polling stations during a chilly morning in the capital, Lusaka [AFP via Getty Images]

Fourteen candidates were on the presidential ballot paper, but the contest was largely seen as a two-horse race between the incumbent and his main challenger Mundubile – running on the banner of the National Reconciliation Party for Unity and Prosperity (NRPUP),

Mundubile is a former minister in the Patriotic Front (PF) government that ruled from 2011 to 2021, with his alliance drawing support from backers of the late former President, Edgar Lungu.

Speaking after casting his ballot on Thursday, he said he stood for “peace and unity”, as well as the empowerment of young people and women.

“This is indeed our second independence. I want every Zambian to celebrate this day,” he added.

A close-up as a polling agent marks a voter's thumbnail with indelible ink. — Officials mark voters’ thumbnails with indelible ink to make sure they do not try to vote again [EPA]

Lungu died more than a year ago and his body remains unburied in South Africa, amid a bitter dispute between Lungu’s family and Hichilema, which has heightened political divisions in Zambia.

Hichilema, 64, won the 2021 election on his sixth attempt and is betting on job creation and an ambitious infrastructure drive to secure a second and final term.

The election was seen as a referendum on his economic record, which has boasted debt restructuring, currency strengthening and lowered inflation.

But his United Party for National Development (UPND) government has also been criticised by Amnesty International for restricting rights and freedoms in the run-up to this election, an accusation that Zambian authorities have yet to comment on.

“After doing the heavy lifting, such as debt restructure, restoring the mining sector, now we want a step change in the growth so that we can take care of society,” Hichilema is quoted by the AFP saying after he voted.

A group of officials sit behind trestle tables. Behind them are four school blackboards fixed to the wall. — A host of election officials are overseeing the process [AFP via Getty Images]

Civil society monitors reported mostly orderly voting alongside some incidents of delays and procedural issues. International observers are present.

Mwiche Nalupumbwe, 26, was among hundreds who braved Thursday’s morning chill to queue at polling stations well before they opened.

“Zambians are frustrated and this election is a 50-50, that is why we are all here early to make the change,” he told the AFP news agency.

“I voted for HH because he cares about us,” James Phiri, a 29-year-old student at the University of Zambia, told the Reuters news agency, using a common nickname for the president.

“Things are better after he re-introduced meal allowances,” he said.