1984 Botswana general election

1984 Botswana general election

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34 of the 38 seats in the National Assembly 18 seats needed for a majority
Registered	293,571
Turnout	77.58% (of registered voters) (22.34pp) 54.18% (of eligible population) (7.81pp) [n 1]
Majority party Minority party Third party   BPP Leader Quett Masire Kenneth Koma Knight Maripe Party BDP BNF BPP Leader's seat None [a] Gaborone South [b] Sebina/Gweta Last election 75.17%, 29 seats 13.00%, 2 seats 7.42%, 1 seat Seats won 29 4 1 Seat change 2 Popular vote 154,863 46,550 14,961 Percentage 68.00% 20.44% 6.57% Swing 7.17pp 7.44pp 0.85pp
Results by constituency
President before election Quett Masire BDP Elected President Quett Masire BDP

General elections were held in Botswana on 8 September 1984. ^[1] Although the result was a fifth successive landslide victory for the Botswana Democratic Party, which won 29 of the 34 elected seats, the elections saw the opposition Botswana National Front make gains, winning both seats in the capital Gaborone and take control of all urban councils except Selebi-Phikwe in the simultaneous local elections. ^[2]

They were the last elections until 2004 in which there were uncontested seats.

Background

Following the death of President Seretse Khama in 1980, the 1984 elections were the first contested with Quett Masire as leader of the BDP.

Electoral system

The 34 elected members of the National Assembly were elected in single-member constituencies, an increase of two from the 1979 elections. Following the 1981 census, constituencies were redrawn and Gaborone was split into two. ^[2]

Campaign

A total of 82 candidates contested the election as party representatives, with the BDP being the only party to contest all 34 seats. The Botswana National Front ran in 27 constituencies, the Botswana People's Party in 13, and the Botswana Independence Party and Botswana Progressive Union in four. ^[2]

The campaign was focussed on economic issues linked to the effect on the diamond industry of droughts and recession. ^[3]

Results

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Botswana Democratic Party	154,863	68.00	29	0
	Botswana National Front	46,550	20.44	4	+2
	Botswana People's Party	14,961	6.57	1	0
	Botswana Independence Party	7,288	3.20	0	0
	Botswana Progressive Union	3,036	1.33	0	New
	Independents	1,058	0.46	0	0
Indirectly-elected members				4	–
Total		227,756	100.00	38	+2
Registered voters/turnout		293,571	–
Source: IPU, Nohlen et al.

Aftermath

Following the elections, Botswana National Front co-leader Kenneth Koma went to court to have the result in the Gaborone South constituency overturned; Koma had lost to Vice-President Peter Mmusi, but an unopened ballot box was discovered after the final count. The High Court annulled the result and a by-election was held in December in which Koma defeated Mmusi. ^[2]

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.
2. In the 8 September general election, Kenneth Koma lost to Peter Mmusi in the Gaborone South constituency. However, a court ruling annulled the election and ordered it to be repeated. Koma won the replay on 1 December.

References

1. Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich & Bernhard Thibaut (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p109 ISBN   0-19-829645-2
2. Botswana: The September 1984 General Election EISA
3. Botswana IPU