Zambia election observers cite intimidation and count pause

International observers said Zambia's election was marred by claims of intimidation, abductions and an hours-long pause in vote counting, as President Hakainde Hichilema sought a second term.

The electoral commission suspended counting for around six hours on Friday after reports of violence against polling staff and the alleged theft of ballot papers. Counting resumed after the commission said the “security threat” had been contained. The commission began releasing constituency results late Friday and said the final outcome would be made public by Monday.

Police said nine suspects had been arrested after the killing of a 57-year-old polling agent in a township outside Lusaka on voting day, while also saying the election had generally been peaceful.

The observer mission of the regional SADC grouping said the suspension had caused “uncertainty and anxiety”. Its head, Samuel Tembenu, said the mission recorded but could not verify reports of intimidation, assault, abduction and damage to property in five provinces, including some reported physical injuries and one submission mentioning fatalities.

Reinhold Lopatka, head of the European Parliament election observers' delegation, said the suspension appeared “disproportionate” because only a small number of more than 13,000 polling stations had reportedly been compromised. He said the mission had been informed that opposition parties faced intimidation, including by security forces, that candidates were reportedly withdrawn under pressure and that opposition rallies ended in violence.

Botswana's former president Mokgweetsi Masisi, leading an International Conference on the Great Lakes Region observer mission, said the suspension risked “the credibility of the process and the confidence of voters”. He urged the main parties to de-escalate, avoid announcing results and stop inflammatory language.

Michael McNamara, chief observer of the European Union mission, said the elections “took place against a backdrop of constrained democratic space”. He said incumbency advantages and blurred lines between state and party had created an uneven playing field, and that state-owned media coverage was biased in favour of the ruling party.

Hichilema, 64, is being challenged by Brian Mundubile, 55, a former minister in the previous Patriotic Front government. Around 8.7 million voters were registered in Zambia, a country of 22 million people.