Zambia election: Hichilema takes early lead

Bloomberg

Zambian opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema took an early lead as the first results were announced from cliffhanger election.
With results tallied from 15 of the 156 constituencies, Hichilema had 171,604 votes versus President Edgar Lungu’s 110,178, chief electoral officer Kryticous Nshindano said Saturday. Total valid votes counted so far are 287,996, he said. The partial count may not be an accurate indication of the final outcome, which is expected to be announced within three days.
In 2016, initial results from urban centers showed Lungu, 64, well ahead of Hichilema, 59, in what was ultimately a close race that the opposition United Party for National Development claimed was rigged. Its legal challenge was thrown out of the Constitutional Court after the party’s lawyers ran out of time to make their case.
Investors are keenly awaiting the outcome of the plebiscite in Africa’s second-biggest copper producer, with Lungu facing his toughest vote yet amid growing poverty and surging inflation. Whoever wins will need to revive an economy in default on its Eurobonds and secure a long-sought loan from the International Monetary Fund.
The lead-up to the vote was tense, with the opposition accusing the government of violence and other unfair tactics to impair its campaign. The army was deployed to counter violence in some areas, and access to social-media platforms including Facebook and WhatsApp has been restricted, according to NetBlocks, a London-based monitoring agency.
“Facebook’s apps are among those affected by the limitations imposed on social media services in Zambia,” a spokesman for the company said in an emailed response to questions. “We continue to actively monitor the situation and are in touch with the relevant authorities in Zambia.”
The ruling party denied trying to rig the outcome and has blamed the opposition for the death of some supporters. Its leader in North-Western Province was killed Thursday.
Lungu expressed shock at that incident, ordering troop reinforcements for that region and in Western and Southern Provinces to counter what he described as “mayhem.” Hichilema won most of his votes in those provinces in 2016.
Long queues Thursday at polling stations in Lusaka, the capital, suggest turnout could be much higher than in the previous two elections. In 2016 just 58% of registered voters cast their ballots, while in the 2015 snap election, when Lungu came into power, it was less than one-third. This time, turnout so far is 71.8%.
Zambia has 7 million registered voters. There’s a new voters’ roll this year that includes more people in areas where Lungu performed well in 2016, but it’s unclear if that will translate into more support for the incumbent.