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Presidential election | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 70.75% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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All 193 seats in the National Assembly | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 70.25% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Malawiportal |
General elections were held in Malawi on 20 May 2014. They were Malawi's first tripartite elections, the first time the president, National Assembly and local councillors were elected on the same day. [1] The presidential election was won by opposition candidate Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party, who defeated incumbent President Joyce Banda.
Malawi's CPI increased by 27.7% in 2013, but its GDP grew by only 5%. [2] Malawi has maintained a polity score of 6 since 2005, designating it as a democracy. [3] 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. [4]
Bingu wa Mutharika died of a heart attack on 5 April 2012, and Joyce Banda took the presidency two days later, in accordance with the constitution, despite protests from some ruling party officials that Banda's expulsion from the ruling party made her ineligible. [5]
The People's Party entered the election with a sitting president, but little in the way of a grass-roots machine. [4]
Twelve candidates were allowed to contest in the election by the Malawi Electoral Commission: [6]
| 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 | ||
The Malawi Electoral Commission cautions that opinion pollsters in Malawi often have questionable credentials and publish biased reports. [7] Some opinion polls have been criticised for lacking credibility and using non-scientific methods. [8]
| Poll source | Date | Sample size | Joyce Banda (PP) | Peter Mutharika ( DPP) | Lazarus Chakwera (MCP) | Atupele Muluzi (UDF) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Research Tech Consultants [8] | April 2014 | 3,883 | 42% | 10% | 23% | 10% |
| Nyasa Times Media [9] | April 2014 | 79,030 | 30% | 19% | 29% | 22% |
| Afrobarometer [10] | April 2014 | 2,400 | 14% | 27% | 21% | 14% |
| Election Results | 30 May 2014 | 20.2% | 36.4% | 27.8% | 13.7% |
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 president who died in 2012, 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. [11]
Court action ensued, [12] 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. 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. [13] 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. [14] Banda quickly said that she accepted the outcome, although she continued to describe the vote as "fraudulent". [15]
Mutharika was sworn in as president on the morning of 31 May 2014. [16] Banda congratulated Mutharika and called for national unity, urging the people to support the new president and wishing him success. [17] 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". [18]
| Candidate | Running mate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Mutharika | Saulos Chilima | Democratic Progressive Party | 1,904,399 | 36.42 | |
| Lazarus Chakwera | Richard Msowoya | Malawi Congress Party | 1,455,880 | 27.84 | |
| Joyce Banda | Sosten Gwengwe | People's Party | 1,056,236 | 20.20 | |
| Atupele Muluzi | Godfrey Chapola | United Democratic Front | 717,224 | 13.72 | |
| Kamuzu Chibambo | White Scander | People's Transformation Party | 19,360 | 0.37 | |
| Mark Katsonga | Jacob Mbunge | Progressive Party Movement | 15,830 | 0.30 | |
| John Chisi | William Tayub | Umodzi Party | 12,048 | 0.23 | |
| George Nnesa | Sylvester Chabuka | Tisinthe Alliance | 11,042 | 0.21 | |
| James Nyondo | Ethel Changa | National Salvation Front | 10,623 | 0.20 | |
| Hellen Singh | Chrissy Tembo | United Independent Party | 9,668 | 0.18 | |
| Friday Jumbe | Joseph Kubwalo | Labour Party | 8,819 | 0.17 | |
| Davis Katsonga | Godfrey Matenganya | Chipani cha Pfuko | 7,454 | 0.14 | |
| Total | 5,228,583 | 100.00 | |||
| Valid votes | 5,228,583 | 98.93 | |||
| Invalid/blank votes | 56,695 | 1.07 | |||
| Total votes | 5,285,278 | 100.00 | |||
| Registered voters/turnout | 7,470,806 | 70.75 | |||
| Source: MEC | |||||
| |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | |||
| Total | 5,157,292 | 100.00 | 193 | 0 | |||
| Valid votes | 5,157,292 | 98.57 | |||||
| Invalid/blank votes | 74,889 | 1.43 | |||||
| Total votes | 5,232,181 | 100.00 | |||||
| Registered voters/turnout | 7,448,247 | 70.25 | |||||
| Source: MEC, MEC | |||||||
| 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 | |||
| Vacant | 5 | |||
| Total | 462 | |||
| Valid votes | 5,032,823 | 97.65 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 121,170 | 2.35 | ||
| Total votes | 5,153,993 | 100.00 | ||
| Source: Nyasa Times, Shanghai Daily | ||||
Politics of Malawi takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Malawi is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the National Assembly. There is a cabinet of Malawi that is appointed by the President of Malawi. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.
Elson Bakili Muluzi is a Malawian politician who was the second freely elected president of Malawi from 1994 to 2004. He was also chairman of the United Democratic Front (UDF) until 2009. He succeeded Hastings Kamuzu Banda as Malawi's president. He also served in Banda's cabinet as minister without portfolio, before retiring in 1980.
The flag of Malawi was officially adopted on 6 July 1964 when the colony of Nyasaland became independent from British rule and renamed itself Malawi.
General elections were held in Malawi on 20 May 2004 to elect a President and the National Assembly. The election had originally been scheduled for 18 May but was postponed for two days in response to opposition complaints of irregularities in the voter roll. By 22 May no results had been announced, leading to protests from the opposition and threats of disorder. On 25 May the Malawi Electoral Commission finally announced the results of the election. Bingu wa Mutharika, the candidate of the ruling United Democratic Front, was declared the winner of the presidential poll, whilst the Malawi Congress Party had won most seats in the National Assembly vote. Voter turnout was around 62%.
Bingu wa Mutharika was a Malawian politician and economist who was President of Malawi from May 2004 until his death in April 2012. He was also President of the Democratic Progressive Party, which he founded in February 2005; it obtained a majority in Malawi's parliament in the 2009 general election.
The United Democratic Front is a political party in Malawi founded in 1992 by Bakili Muluzi. It claims to be a liberal party in Malawi and is mainly strong in the southern region populated by ethnic Yao. Bakili Muluzi was President of Malawi from 1994 to 2004.
Malawi elects on the national level a head of state and government – the president – and a national assembly. The President and members of the National Assembly, elected simultaneously at a General Election, together form the Malawi Parliament owing to the presidents dual role as head of government and head of state. In practice however, the National Assembly is on par with the executive and is able to exercise oversight functions through investigations and public hearings on various matters including those involving the executive.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a political party in Malawi. The party was formed in February 2005 by Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika after a dispute with the United Democratic Front (UDF), which was led by his predecessor, Bakili Muluzi.
John Zenus Ungapake Tembo is a Malawian politician who served for years as President of the Malawi Congress Party (MCP). Tembo comes from the Dedza District in central Malawi, and he is a teacher by profession. Beginning in the 1960s he was an important politician in Malawi, and he was a key figure in the regime of Hastings Banda (1964–1994). He has been variously described as "physically slight, ascetic, fastidious" and "cunning". He was replaced as President of the MCP in August 2013.
Gwandaguluwe "Gwanda" Chakuamba Phiri was a Malawian politician who was the leader of the New Republican Party (NRP). He hailed from Nsanje, a district on the southern part of Malawi. Gwanda Chakuamba attended Zomba Catholic Secondary School, a 2 year metriculation at Sulosi College in Bulawayo Zimbabwe before proceeding to the US to study law though not much is known about whether he did a degree program or a short course.
The Kamuzu Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Blantyre, Malawi. It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 20,000 people. This can be limited for safety reasons. Big Bullets and Be Forward Wanderers are tenants.
Cassim Chilumpha is a Malawian politician who was Vice-President of Malawi from June 2004 to May 2009. Later, under President Joyce Banda, he was appointed as Minister of Energy and Mining in April 2012.
Joyce Hilda Banda is a Malawian politician and former President. Banda took office as President following the sudden death of President Bingu wa Mutharika. She is the founder and leader of the People's Party, created in 2011. An educator and grassroots women's rights activist, she was the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2009 and the Vice-President of Malawi from May 2009 to April 2012. She had served in various roles as a member of Parliament and as Minister of Gender and Child Welfare before she became the President of the Republic of Malawi.
General elections were held in Malawi on 19 May 2009. Incumbent President Bingu wa Mutharika ran for re-election; his main opponent was John Tembo, the president of the Malawi Congress Party (MCP). Five other candidates also ran. The election was won by Mutharika, who was re-elected to the Presidency with around two-thirds of the vote. Mutharika's DPP also won a strong parliamentary majority.
Arthur Peter Mutharika is a Malawian politician and lawyer who was President of Malawi from May 2014 to June 2020. Mutharika has worked in the field of international justice, specialising in international economic law, international law and comparative constitutional law. He informally served as an adviser to his older brother, President Bingu wa Mutharika, on issues of foreign and domestic policy from the onset of his election campaign until the President's death on 5 April 2012.
Atupele Muluzi is a Malawian politician, businessman and was a Member of Parliament for Machinga North East constituency from 2004 until May 27, 2019. He is also the President of the United Democratic Front and was a presidential candidate during the 2019 election. He was a running mate in the 2020 presidential elections, on a coalition ticket with incumbent President Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party. Muluzi was Minister of Natural Resources, Energy and Mining from 2014 to 2015 and the only opposition member to serve in the Mutharika administration. Subsequently, he served as Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security in 2015, and then Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development in 2015. He is currently Minister of Health. He is the son of the former president Bakili Muluzi.
The 2012 Malawian constitutional crisis occurred from April 5, 2012 - April 7, 2012 after senior members of the Democratic Progressive Party-led cabinet failed to notify the public of the death of the sitting president, Bingu wa Mutharika on April 5. Instead, cabinet ministers held a series of meetings in Lilongwe, Malawi without vice-president Joyce Banda with the aim of undermining the constitution and Banda's succession to Presidency. News confirming his death had, however, quickly spread across the country through word of mouth, cellphone text messages, Malawian bloggers, Twitter, Facebook, and on listservs by the end of the day on April 5, 2012. Therefore, the failure to announce his death resulted in speculation over the real health of the president and over whether the succession procedures would be followed as outlined in the constitution. According to the constitution, the vice-president takes over but there had been no official word on a successor or communication with the vice-president. Amidst growing speculation, the Cabinet announced that the president's brother, Peter Mutharika, the foreign minister, was the new President of the party on April 6. The Cabinet only announced his death two days after his death, after which Banda became Malawi's first female President.
Raphael "Ralph" Tenthani was a freelance journalist from Malawi. Tenthani was a BBC correspondent and a columnist for The Sunday Times. He was a respected journalist in Malawi well known for his popular column, "The Muckraking". He was well known for providing political analysis on topical issues. He had been the subject of controversy for his candid reporting on political issues. He was very critical of the crackdown on journalism during the Bingu wa Mutharika administration. He was also a columnist for Associated Press, Pan African News Agency, and the Maravi Post.
General elections were held in Malawi on 21 May 2019 to elect the President, National Assembly and local government councillors. Incumbent President Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party was re-elected, with his party remaining the largest in the National Assembly. However, on 3 February 2020, the Constitutional Court annulled the presidential election results due to evidence of irregularities, and ordered fresh elections be held. They were widely dubbed the "Tipp-Ex elections" after a brand of correction fluid which opponents claimed had been used to tamper with votes.
Presidential elections were held in Malawi on 23 June 2020, having originally been scheduled for 19 May and later 2 July. They followed the annulment of the results of the 2019 presidential elections, in which Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party had received the most votes.
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