2020 Malawian presidential election


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.
The result of the re-run elections was a victory for Lazarus Chakwera of the Malawi Congress Party, who defeated Mutharika by margin of 59% to 40%.

Background

In the May 2019 general elections, incumbent President Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party was re-elected with 39% of the vote, defeating Lazarus Chakwera of the Malawi Congress Party and Saulos Chilima of the United Transformation Movement. The DPP also remained the largest party in the National Assembly, winning 62 of the 193 seats. However, the presidential election was challenged in court by Chakwera and Chilima, and in February 2020 the Constitutional Court annulled the presidential election results, citing evidence of irregularities, and ordered fresh elections be held within 150 days.
Parliament passed the Parliamentary and Presidential Elections Act Amendment Bill on 24 February, setting 19 May as the date for the new presidential elections and extending the terms of MPs and local councillors by one year to allow for harmonised presidential, parliamentary and local elections in 2025. In March the Malawi Electoral Commission announced a new election date, 2 July, one day before the 150 day limit to hold elections set by the Constitutional Court. On 21 May the Legal Affairs committee of parliament endorsed for fresh presidential elections to be held on 23 June rather than 2 July.

Candidates

Lazarus Chakwera and Peter Kuwani filed their respective nominations on 6 May 2020. Peter Mutharika filed his nomination the following day, with Atupele Muluzi as his running mate.

Electoral system

As a result of the Constitutional Court ruling, the President of Malawi will be elected using the two-round system, replacing the former first-past-the-post system used in 2019.

Opinion polls

A poll conducted by IPOR Malawi showed that 53% of respondents expected Lazarus Chakwera to win the election, while 31% expected Mutharika to win.
On a national level, according to the polls, 51% would vote for Chakwera, while 33% for Mutharika and 0.2% for Peter Kuwani.
Another poll by Afrobarometer suggested that Chakwera was most likely to win the election.

Results

Reactions

Opposition figures in other African countries have been reportedly congratulating Chakwera's victory, including the leader of Zimbabwe's Movement for Democratic Change, Douglas Mwonzora, leader of Tanzania's Alliance for Change and Transparency leader Zitto Kabwe, former leader of South Africa's Democratic Alliance, Mmusi Maimane, leader of Zambia's National Democratic Congress Chishimba Kambwili, and aspiring presidential candidate for the 2021 Ugandan general election Henry Tumukunde.