By Political Reporter
International election observer missions have described Zambia’s 13 August 2026 general elections as largely peaceful and orderly, while raising concerns over the suspension of results, electoral reforms, political party regulation and the secrecy of the ballot.
The preliminary statements were released in Lusaka on Saturday by the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the joint African Union–Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (AU-COMESA), the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) and the Electoral Commissions Forum (ECF) missions. The observers urged political parties and their supporters to remain calm as the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) completes the counting, verification and announcement of results.
The SADC Electoral Observation Mission, led by former Malawian Justice Minister Samuel Tembenu, deployed 106 personnel from 10 SADC member states and observed 277 polling stations across all 10 provinces. It said the atmosphere was calm and peaceful at 275 of the 277 polling stations it observed, representing 99 percent of the stations visited.
“The atmosphere was calm and peaceful at 275 of the 277 polling stations observed, being 99 per cent,” the SADC mission said in its preliminary statement.
It also found that security officers generally conducted themselves professionally, with police behaviour assessed as professional at 247 of the polling stations observed.
The joint AU-COMESA mission similarly reported that voting was conducted in a “generally peaceful and orderly environment” in 98.6 percent of the 740 polling stations it visited across eight provinces.
“The Mission observed sustained voter engagement throughout the day,” the AU-COMESA mission said, noting that queues were present at 83 percent of the polling stations visited.
However, the observers identified operational problems, including late opening of polling stations, shortages of some electoral materials, long queues and accessibility challenges.
According to AU-COMESA, only 66 percent of polling stations it visited opened on time, compared with 89 percent in its assessment of the 2021 election. Late arrivals of election officials and materials, as well as inadequate preparation, were among the reasons cited for delays.
The mission said voting was interrupted at five polling stations because voters protested over slow processing, while complaints were received at 39 stations, mainly concerning delays.
Results suspension raises concern
The most significant concern raised by the observer missions centred on the temporary suspension of the counting and announcement of results by the ECZ on 14 August.
The AU-COMESA mission said the suspension, together with a premature declaration of victory by opposition presidential candidate Brian Mundubile, contributed to mistrust, political tension and incidents of violence.
“The Mission underscores that the integrity of the results management process depends on strict adherence to the legal framework, transparent communication by the electoral management body, and restraint by all political actors from making premature declarations,” the mission said.
The ICGLR mission, headed by former Botswana president Mokgweetsi Masisi, also expressed concern over the suspension.
“I begin by expressing our concern at this suspension and its potential effect on the credibility of the process and the confidence of voters,” Masisi said.
“The right to have one’s vote counted is fundamental to democratic representation. Any interruption of counting may undermine that right and must be addressed transparently and urgently.”
The ECZ later resumed counting and the announcement of results at 10pm on 14 August after citing security concerns.
Masisi said the observer missions subsequently engaged both the ruling party and the main opposition in an effort to ease tensions.
“We immediately engaged in shuttle diplomacy by calling on the main opposition and the ruling party to deescalate, to refrain from announcement of any results, to stop any inflammatory language, reassure us that they will continue respecting the rule of law,” he said.
He said the ECZ had provided explanations for the suspension and outlined measures to secure ballots and resume the process.
“As Heads of Missions, we were reassured by the explanation offered by ECZ,” Masisi said.
Concerns over secrecy of the ballot
Both the SADC and ICGLR missions raised concerns about the recording of unique voter or national registration numbers on ballot papers.
The SADC mission said it observed instances where a voter’s national registration number was recorded against or on the ballot paper.
“The Mission makes no finding as to the purpose of that practice,” SADC said, but warned that any procedure allowing a ballot paper to be traced to an identifiable voter was inconsistent with the constitutional guarantee of ballot secrecy.
Masisi similarly said the practice raised concerns about whether the secrecy of the ballot had been adequately protected.
“A unique voter number was recorded on each ballot paper which raises the possibility of tracing a vote to the actual voter following an audit of some mischief after the vote,” he said.
“This raises concerns about the actual secrecy of the ballot.”
The SADC mission recommended that the ECZ discontinue any practice that could link a ballot paper to an identifiable voter and ensure that polling booths are positioned to protect the secrecy of the vote.
Political party law remains a major gap
The observers also criticised Zambia’s failure to enact dedicated legislation governing political parties.
SADC said the Constitution requires legislation covering the registration, management, funding and accountability of political parties, but such legislation had not been enacted despite a Constitutional Court directive.
“The Mission regards this as the most significant structural gap in the framework governing these elections,” SADC said.
The AU-COMESA mission reached a similar conclusion, noting that Parliament was dissolved in May 2026 without passing a Political Parties law.
The missions also raised concerns about electoral and constitutional reforms being introduced relatively late in the electoral cycle, arguing that this reduced the time available to train election officials, educate voters and prepare political contestants.
Despite these shortcomings, the observers commended Zambia’s voters for participating in the election and urged all political actors to use legal mechanisms to resolve disputes.
“The Mission urges all stakeholders to remain calm, exercise restraint, refrain from acts or statements that could heighten tensions, allow the ECZ to complete the counting and verification, announce the results, and use established legal and institutional mechanisms to resolve any electoral disputes peacefully,” AU-COMESA said.
The SADC mission said its preliminary statement did not cover the full post-election process and that a final report would address results management and the announcement of results. Its final report is expected within 30 days of the preliminary statement.
The ICGLR mission also said it would continue monitoring developments until the election process was concluded.
“We therefore renew our call for calm, restraint, respect for the rule of law and patience until the results are announced by the lawful authority being the ECZ,” Masisi said.
