Zambian electoral commission on Monday declared business tycoon and opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema as the winner of the presidential election held on Thursday, Aug. 12, in which the turnout was estimated at just more than 70 percent, reported Africa News.
According to the electoral commission, Hichilema defeated the outgoing President Edgar Lungu by more than a million votes.
Hichilema got 2,810,777 votes in the final tally while incumbent Lungu came in second place with 1,814,201 votes, out of 7 million registered voters.
“I, therefore, declare that the said Hichilema to be president of Zambia,” said the Zambian electoral commission chairman, Esau Chulu, in a televised address.
Notably, this is the sixth time that the 59-year-old Hichilema has run for the presidential post and the third time he has challenged 64-year-old Lungu. In 2016, Hichilema narrowly lost to Lungu by around 100,000 votes.
This time Hichilema got the support of 10 opposition parties under the banner of his and the largest opposition United Party for National Development (UPND).
Lungu had begun crying fouls even before a winner was declared. He claimed that the election was neither free nor fair due to incidents of violence reported in cities where Hichilema has a stronghold.
In a statement issued through the Zambian president’s office, he alleged that his party’s polling agents were attacked and chased from voting stations.
International election observers have also overall commended the transparent and peaceful organization of the polls. But they condemned the restrictions on freedoms of assembly and movement.
The Zambian security forces had restricted Hichilema from campaigning in several parts of the country, including the Copperbelt Province, citing breaches of coronavirus measures and a public order act.
As per the Zambian Constitution, Lungu can approach the Constitutional Court to lodge a complaint to nullify elections within seven days after a winner is announced.
