Malawi President Re-elected
Malawi Electoral Commission MEC has declared Peter professor Peter Mutharika as the winner of Presidential elections which were held on Tuesday 21 May, 2019.
The declaration follows the vacation of an injunction which was obtained by the main opposition Malawi Congress Party MCP restraining MEC from announcing the results until it resolved all complaints that it received from various political parties.
Announcing the results at the main tally centre in COMESA Hall Blantyre Chairperson of MEC Justice Dr Jane Mayemu Ansah, SC, JA, said Mutharika of Democratic Progressive Party DPP got 1,940,709 votes representing 38.57 percent.
Ansah said Dr Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera of MCP got 1,781,740 votes representing 35.41 percent while Dr Saulos Klaus Chilima of UTM 1,018,369 votes representing 20.24 percent.
“Professor John Eugenes Chisi, Umodzi Party, 19,187 votes representing 0.38 percent,Reverend Hadwick Kaliya, Independent, 15,726 votes representing 0.31 percent, Peter DSD Kuwani, Mbakuwawaku Movement for Development (MMD), 20,369 votes representing 0.40 percent and Atupele Muluzi, United Democratic Front (UDF), 235,164 votes representing 4.67 percent,” explained Ansah
She said the Commission had thoroughly reviewed all complaints that were lodged for the Presidential Election therefore the Presidential Elections are free and fair and these results are the true reflection of the will of the people of Malawi.
Ansah then congratulated Mutharika and his vice Everton Herbert Chimulirenji and asked them to lead people of Malawi into a brighter future.
“Let me urge the president elect and his vice to work and perform to their best and not betray the trust and confidence of the people of Malawi who have elected them,” stressed Ansah
The MEC chair called upon all Malawians to serve the country and to give the future generation a better, stronger and prosperous Malawi.
Ten presidential candidates submitted their nomination papers but seven made it to the final contest after three were dropped from the race due to various reasons.
During the nomination process the Commission learned many valuable lessons and one that is undisputable is that the country needs to put in place measures that ensure that only serious candidates should make it to the final contest.
MEC declared results of Members of parliament in 192 constituencies.
Some veteran politicians who have been MPs since the onset of multiparty democracy lost the elections.
42 women made it to parliament as compared to 32 in 2014 tripartite elections.
Results of the local government elections are yet to be released.
