Malawian general election, 2014

Malawian general election, 2014

20 May 2014

7,537,548 registered voters[1] Simple-majority votes needed to win Turnout 5,288,258 (70.78%)[2]   Nominee Peter Mutharika Lazarus Chakwera Party DPP MCP Running mate Saulos Chilima Richard Msowoya Popular vote 1,904,399 1,455,880 Percentage 36.4% 27.8%   Nominee Joyce Banda Atupele Muluzi Party PP UDF Running mate Sosten Gwengwe Godfrey Chapola Popular vote 1,056,236 717,224 Percentage 20.2% 13.7%

President before election Joyce Banda PP President Peter Mutharika DPP

General elections were held in Malawi on 20 May 2014. They were Malawi's first tripartite elections, making it the first time the people of Malawi voted for their local governments, members of parliament and president in a single election.^[3] The presidential election was won by opposition candidate Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party, who defeated incumbent President Joyce Banda.

Background

Malawi's CPI increased by 27.7% in 2013, but its GDP grew by only 5%.^[4] Malawi has maintained a polity score of 6 since 2005, designating it as a democracy.^[5] Malawi's previous presidential election in 2009 was only the fourth such election in the country's history following the end of Hastings Banda's period of one-man rule in 1994.

Bingu wa Mutharika, who had won the 2004 election, picked his Foreign Minister Joyce Banda to be Vice President after successfully contesting the 2009 election. She was expelled from the Democratic Progressive Party and formed the People's Party when she refused to endorse President Bingu wa Mutharika's younger brother Peter Mutharika for president in the 2014 general election.^[6]

Bingu wa Mutharika died of a heart attack on 5 April 2012, and Joyce Banda took the presidency according to the constitution, despite protests about not belonging to the ruling party.

The People's Party entered the election with a sitting president, but little in the way of a grass-roots machine.^[6]

Presidential

Candidates

Twelve candidates were allowed to contest in the election by the Malawi Electoral Commission:^[7]

Portrait	Nominee	Party		Running mate
	Joyce Banda		People's Party (PP)	Sosten Gwengwe
	Peter Mutharika		Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)	Saulos Chilima
	Lazarus Chakwera		Malawi Congress Party (MCP)	Richard Msowoya
	Atupele Muluzi		United Democratic Front (UDF)	Godfrey Chapola
	James Nyondo		National Salvation Front (NASAF)	Ethel Changa
	Mark Katsonga		Progressive Party Movement (PPM)	Jacob Mbunge
	Davis Katsonga		Chipani cha Pfuko (CCP)	Godfrey Matenganya
	George Nnesa		Tisinthe Alliance (TA)	Sylvester Chabuka
	Hellen Singh		United Independent Party (UIP)	Chrissy Tembo
	Kamuzu Chibambo		People's Transformation Party (Petra)	White Scander
	Friday Jumbe		Labour Party (LP)	Joseph Kubwalo
	John Chisi		Umodzi Party (UP)	William Tayub

Opinion polls

The Malawi Electoral Commission cautions that opinion pollsters in Malawi often have questionable credentials and publish biased reports.^[8] Some opinion polls have been criticized for lacking credibility and using non-scientific methods.^[9]

Poll source	Date	Sample size	Joyce Banda (PP)	Peter Mutharika (DPP)	Lazarus Chakwera (MCP)	Atupele Muluzi (UDF)
Research Tech Consultants[9]	April 2014	3,883	42%	10%	23%	10%
Nyasa Times Media[10]	April 2014	79,030	30%	19%	29%	22%
Afrobarometer[11]	April 2014	2,400	14%	27%	21%	14%
Election Results	30 May 2014		20.2%	36.4%	27.8%	13.7%

Polling day

Amid a breakdown in electronic systems for relaying results back to IEC headquarters, Banda claimed fraud and attempted to cancel the election after only one third of the votes were counted, and Peter Mutharika, brother of the 2009 election winner, was well ahead. Banda said another vote should be held within 90 days, and she said she would not be standing, but opposition parties and the Malawi Law Society objected.^[12]

Court action ensued,^[13] but the IEC said the first count would be completed, and a recount started. The result would only be announced after the recount, estimated to take two months.

Results

On 30 May 2014, the High Court ruled that any recount must be done within eight days of the vote; since the allowed period had already ended, the court ruled that the electoral commission should announce the results.^[14] Accordingly, the electoral commission declared later in the day that Mutharika had won the presidential election with 36.4% of the vote. Another opposition candidate, Lazarus Chakwera of the MCP, received 27.8%, while Banda trailed in third place with 20.2%. The head of the commission, Maxon Mbendera, said that "the rule of law compels us to release the results", although he acknowledged that some of the commission's members had "reservations" about them.^[15] Banda quickly said that she accepted the outcome, although she continued to describe the vote as "fraudulent".^[16]

Mutharika was sworn in as President on the morning of 31 May 2014.^[17] Banda congratulated Mutharika and called for national unity, urging the people to support the new President and wishing him success.^[18] An inauguration ceremony for Mutharika was held in Blantyre on 2 June 2014. Banda was not present at the inauguration, held at Kamuzu Stadium, and her absence was viewed by some as a snub, given the history of bitter rivalry between the two. Mutharika said that he was offering an olive branch and wanted to "bury the past", expressing "regret" at Banda's absence. He said that he was not interested in "vengeance", although he added that "those who have broken the law will face the full course of justice".^[19]

President

Candidate	Party	Votes	%
Peter Mutharika	Democratic Progressive Party	1,904,399	36.4
Lazarus Chakwera	Malawi Congress Party	1,455,880	27.8
Joyce Banda	People's Party	1,056,236	20.2
Atupele Muluzi	United Democratic Front	717,224	13.7
Kamuzu Chibambo	People's Transformation Party	19,360	0.4
Mark Katsonga	Progressive Party Movement	15,830	0.3
John Chisi	Umodzi Party	12,048	0.2
George Nnesa	Tisinthe Alliance	11,042	0.2
James Nyondo	National Salvation Front	10,623	0.2
Hellen Singh	United Independent Party	9,668	0.2
Friday Jumbe	Labour Party	8,819	0.2
Davis Katsonga	Chipani cha Pfuko	7,454	0.1
Invalid/blank votes		56,695	–
Total		5,285,278	100
Registered voters/turnout		7,470,806	70.7
Source: MEC

National Assembly

Party	Votes	%	Seats	+/–
Democratic Progressive Party	1,133,402	21.98	51	–63
People's Party	935,994	18.15	26	New
Malawi Congress Party	895,659	17.37	48	+22
United Democratic Front	496,765	9.63	14	–3
Progressive Party Movement	33,817	0.66	0	0
Alliance for Democracy	31,907	0.62	1	0
United Independent Party	24,132	0.47	0	New
National Salvation Front	19,616	0.38	0	New
Nthanda Congress Party	16,497	0.32	0	New
New Rainbow Coalition	14,091	0.27	0	0
Chipani cha Pfuko	10,545	0.20	1	New
New Labour Party	4,473	0.09	0	New
Umodzi Party	3,145	0.06	0	New
Malawi Forum for Unity and Development	2,814	0.05	0	–1
People's Transformation Party	2,746	0.05	0	0
Maravi People's Party	733	0.01	0	–1
People's Democratic Movement	471	0.01	0	New
Independents	1,530,485	29.68	52	+20
Invalid/blank votes	74,889	–	–	–
Total	5,232,181	100	193	–
Registered voters/turnout	7,448,247	70.25	–	–
Source: MEC, MEC

Local government

Party	Votes	%	Seats
Democratic Progressive Party			165
Malawi Congress Party			131
People's Party			65
United Democratic Front			57
Chipani cha Pfuko			2
Alliance for Democracy			1
National Salvation Front			1
Independents			35
By-elections pending	–	–	5
Invalid/blank votes	121,170	–	–
Total	5,153, 993	100	457
Registered voters/turnout		68.99	–
Source: Nyasa Times, Shanghai Daily

References

1. "MEC NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION STATISTICS - 2014" (PDF). Malawi Electoral Commission. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
2. Chilunga, Zawadi (30 May 2014). "Mutharika declared winner in Malawi 2014 presidential election". Nyasa Times. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
3. "Malawi Election Commission News", 2009
4. "World Economic Outlook Database". International Monetary Fund. April 2014.
5. "Authority Trends, 1964-2010: Malawi". Polity IV Project. Retrieved 5 May 2014.
6. Madonna attacks Malawi's president after attempt to nullify elections The Guardian
7. Fazilla, Tembo (2014-02-21). "Malawi electoral body releases names of May 20, 2014 Presidential candidates, however, a court later approved a twelfth candidate, Professor John Chisi, who at the time was technically a civil servant and therefore not allowed to run for president. The following are the Presidential candidates.". thezambezian.com. Retrieved 2014-04-29.
8. "Malawi media cautioned on opinion polls ahead of 2014 tripartite elections". Nyasa Times. 2 October 2013.
9. Muheya, Green (29 April 2014). "Malawi opposition in denial mode over opinion polls". Nyasa Times.
10. Kufa, Charles (15 April 2014). "JB in front, survey tips tight race for LoP post". Nyasa Times.
11. "Malawi's 2014 Elections: Amid Concerns About Fairness, Outcome is Too Close to Call" (PDF). Afrobarometer. April 2014. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
12. Malawi to recount votes after fraud claims News24
13. Malawi court demands election results before recount
14. Zawadi Chilunga, "Court rules MEC should declare winner of Malawi presidential polls", Nyasa Times, 30 May 2014.
15. Zawadi Chilunga, "Mutharika declared winner in Malawi 2014 presidential election", Nyasa Times, 30 May 2014.
16. Wanga Gwede, "JB accepts to hand over power to APM: Malawi presidency", Nyasa Times, 30 May 2014.
17. Zawadi Chilunga, "'So help me God': Mutharika sworn in as Malawi President, Chilima VP", Nyasa Times, 31 May 2014.
18. Thom Chiumia, "Defeated JB congratulates Mutharika: 'Malawi must move forward'", Nyasa Times, 31 May 2014.
19. Zawadi Chilunga, "Mutharika regrets JB's snub in power handover: Muluzi cheered", Nyasa Times, 2 June 2014.