LUSAKA-(MaraviPost)-Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema has secured re-election with 60 percent of the vote, the Electoral Commission of Zambia announced on Tuesday, giving the United Party for National Development leader another five years in office.
ECZ Chairperson Mwangala Zaloumis said opposition candidate Brian Mundubile of the NRPUP received 38 percent of the vote.
Five of the country’s 226 constituencies were still being counted, but the Commission said those results would not affect the final outcome.
In a statement after the announcement, the 64-year-old Hichilema said, “We are truly humbled by the trust you have placed in our hands.” He added, “To those citizens who preferred the ideas presented by our opponents, we hear you, and we will continue to work for you.”
In Lusaka, hundreds of UPND supporters wearing red took to the streets to celebrate. They sang, danced and set off firecrackers late into the night.
Thursday’s voting day was largely peaceful, but the period leading up to it was marked by opposition complaints of intimidation, arrests and irregularities.
The Electoral Commission paused vote counting for about six hours on Friday after reports of attacks on polling staff and alleged theft of ballot papers. Officials said the count resumed once the security situation was under control.
International observer missions, including the European Union, said the suspension risked undermining public confidence.
They also noted that restrictions on opposition campaign activities may have made the contest uneven.
Tensions rose further over the weekend when police announced the arrest of 11 people, including six opposition members, following a raid linked to what government called militia activity.
Authorities said the group was found with military-grade weapons and materials allegedly meant for an armed insurrection.
The raid was said to have taken place at Mundubile’s home.
The NRPUP said shots were fired and that a member of parliament was injured during the operation.
The party rejected the claims. “The NRPUP rejects with absolute disdain the spurious and entirely false claims made by the Zambian Government that the NRPUP, its leadership or its members have been involved in insurgency, militia activity or any related conduct whatsoever,” it said in a statement.
On Monday, Mundubile alleged without providing evidence that result sheets had been tampered with.
He also claimed that officials in Southern Province were pressured to change figures, with some communication allegedly made through local government structures.
Oxford Economics Africa said the developments around the vote had raised serious questions about the integrity of the results and described the country as very tense.
The election was viewed as a test of Hichilema’s first term since 2021. His administration highlights debt restructuring, a return to economic growth and lower inflation as key achievements. Critics argue that those gains have not yet improved daily life for most Zambians.
According to the World Bank, more than 70 percent of the country’s 22 million people live on less than 3 dollars a day.
Zambia, Africa’s second-largest copper producer, has a record of peaceful transfers of power since multiparty politics returned in 1991.
That pattern continued with this election, even as debate continues over the conduct of the campaign.
With the result now confirmed, President Hichilema faces the challenge of turning economic stability into jobs, lower food prices and improved living standards for ordinary citizens.
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