1979 Botswana general election

1979 Botswana general election

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32 of the 36 seats in the National Assembly 17 seats needed for a majority
Registered	243,483
Turnout	55.24% (of registered voters) (24.02pp) 46.37% (of eligible population) (20.16pp) [n 1]
Majority party Minority party Third party   Leader Seretse Khama Kenneth Koma Philip Matante Party BDP BNF BPP Leader's seat None [a] Gaborone (defeated) Francistown (defeated) Last election 76.62%, 27 seats 11.49%, 2 seats 6.56%, 2 seats Seats won 29 2 1 Seat change 2 1 Popular vote 101,098 17,480 9,983 Percentage 75.17% 13.00% 7.42% Swing 1.45pp 1.51pp 0.86pp
Results by constituency
President before election Seretse Khama BDP Elected President Seretse Khama BDP

General elections were held in Botswana on 20 October 1979. The result was a fourth successive landslide victory for the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), which won 29 of the 32 elected seats, ^[1] including two in which they were unopposed. ^[2]

As of the 2019 general elections, this is the last election where the BDP received more than 70% of the popular vote.

Campaign

A total of 69 candidates contested the election. The BDP was the only party to run a full slate of 32 candidates, with the Botswana National Front putting forward 16 candidates, the Botswana People's Party 14 and the Botswana Independence Party five. There were also two independents. ^[2] The BDP campaigned on opposition to apartheid in South Africa and a call for economic sanctions against Zimbabwe-Rhodesia. ^[3]

Prior to the elections, the voter roll was completely revamped. The revision was accompanied by a vigorous radio and press campaign by the government to encourage registration. Although the number of registered voters increased by only 6,635 compared to the 1974 elections, this was deemed to be due to the 1974 voter roll having numerous duplications.

Results

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Botswana Democratic Party	101,098	75.17	29	+2
	Botswana National Front	17,480	13.00	2	0
	Botswana People's Party	9,983	7.42	1	–1
	Botswana Independence Party	5,657	4.21	0	–1
	Independents	278	0.21	0	0
Indirectly-elected members				4	–
Total		134,496	100.00	36	0
Registered voters/turnout		230,231	–
Source: EISA, Nohlen et al.

Notes

1. National Study On Voter Apathy in Botswana (PDF). University of Botswana. IEC Botswana. 2022. p. 17.

1. Incumbent presidents are ineligible to contest National Assembly seats; instead, they serve as ex-officio members of Parliament.

References

1. Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich & Bernhard Thibaut (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p113 ISBN   0-19-829645-2
2. Botswana: The October 1979 General Election EISA
3. Botswana Inter-Parliamentary Union