1994 Malawian general election

General elections were held in Malawi on 17 May 1994 to elect the President and National Assembly. They were the first multi-party elections in the country since prior to independence in 1964, and the first since the restoration of multi-party democracy the previous year. The Malawi Congress Party (MCP), which had governed the country since independence (from 1966 to 1993 as the sole legal party), was decisively beaten by the United Democratic Front (UDF).

1994 Malawian general election

← 1992 17 May 1994 1999 →

Presidential election

AD Nominee Bakili Muluzi Hastings Banda Chakufwa Chihana Party UDF MCP AFORD Running mate Justin Malewezi Gwanda Chakuamba Popular vote 1,404,754 996,353 562,862 Percentage 47.15% 33.44% 18.89%

President before election Hastings Banda MCP Elected President Bakili Muluzi UDF

Assembly election

All 177 seats in the National Assembly 89 seats needed for a majority

Party Leader Vote % Seats +/– UDF Bakili Muluzi 46.38 85 New MCP Hastings Banda 33.69 56 −46 AFORD Chakufwa Chihana 18.97 36 New This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.

MCP leader Hastings Banda, who had become president upon Malawi being proclaimed a republic in 1966 (he had served as Prime Minister from independence until 1966), ran in his first election since being stripped of his title of president for life in 1993. He was defeated by the UDF's Bakili Muluzi, who received 47% of the vote to Banda's 33%.^[1]

The UDF became the largest party in the National Assembly, but was three seats short of a majority. The MCP finished a distant second, and was left with less than one-third of the seats in the enlarged National Assembly.

With the MCP's defeat beyond doubt, Banda conceded defeat two days after the polls closed and promised his "full support and cooperation" during the transition.^[2] Reputedly in his mid-nineties, he would have been the oldest elected president in world history had he won.

The election completed Malawi's transition to full democracy.

Campaign

The National Assembly elections were contested by eight parties, who put forward a total of 600 candidates, as well as 13 independents. The UDF won 88 seats, three short of a majority, whilst the MCP finished second with 56 seats. Results in two seats, both won by Banda's MCP, were annulled due to irregularities.^[1] Voter turnout was 79.6%.^[3]

Results

President

Candidate		Running mate	Party	Votes	%
	Bakili Muluzi	Justin Malewezi[4]	United Democratic Front	1,404,754	47.15
	Hastings Banda	Gwanda Chakuamba[5]	Malawi Congress Party	996,353	33.44
	Chakufwa Chihana		Alliance for Democracy	562,862	18.89
	Kamlepo Kalua		Malawi Democratic Party	15,624	0.52
Total				2,979,593	100.00
Valid votes				2,979,593	97.97
Invalid/blank votes				61,780	2.03
Total votes				3,041,373	100.00
Registered voters/turnout				3,775,256	80.56
Source: African Elections Database

National Assembly

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	United Democratic Front	1,360,432	46.38	85	New
	Malawi Congress Party	988,172	33.69	56	–85
	Alliance for Democracy	556,457	18.97	36	New
	United Front for Multiparty Democracy	9,721	0.33	0	New
	Malawi Democratic Party	6,980	0.24	0	New
	Malawi National Democratic Party	2,913	0.10	0	New
	Congress for the Second Republic	2,118	0.07	0	New
	Malawi Democratic Union	323	0.01	0	New
	Independents	6,159	0.21	0	New
Total		2,933,275	100.00	177	+26
Valid votes		2,933,275	97.58
Invalid/blank votes		72,731	2.42
Total votes		3,006,006	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		3,775,256	79.62
Source: MEC

Aftermath

Following the elections, on 25 May Muluzi formed a 25-member cabinet, including members of the Malawi National Democratic Party and the United Front for Multiparty Democracy. He left three posts unfilled in the hope that the Alliance for Democracy would also join the government.^[1]

References

1. Malawi: Parliamentary Chamber: National Assembly: Elections held in 1994 Inter-Parliamentary Union
2. Bill Keller (20 January 1994). "One of Africa's Last Dictators Bows to Democracy". The New York Times.
3. Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich & Bernhard Thibaut (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p558 ISBN 0-19-829645-2
4. https://www.nyasatimes.com/mutharikas-runningmate-puzzle-tembenu-faction-emerges-in-dpp/ "In 1994, Bakili Muluzi chose a career civil servant, Justin Malewezi as his running-mate, and despite serving with him for two terms, he lost elections in 2004 when he took a go at the presidency."
5. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/obituaries/article/john-tembo-obituary-zm7tdxrr5 "The 95-year-old Banda's last insult to Tembo was to choose the more popular Gwanda Chakuamba as his running mate for the elections in May 1994."

External links

• Post-election report on Sky News