JOHANNESBURG - President Edgar Lungu of Zambia eked out a victory in the last Thursday's elections, according to official results announced Monday afternoon. But his main rival challenged the impartiality of electoral officials and demanded a recount.
After an exceptionally violent campaign in a country considered one of the most stable democracies in Africa, Mr. Lungu has collected 50.35 percent of the vote, just over the threshold of votes to avoid a runoff. The main opposition candidate, a wealthy businessman, Hakainde Hichilema, won 47.67 percent of the total.
Commission officials had initially said they would release the final results early Sunday, but the vote count took longer because of unexpected participation basis. The party of Mr Hichilema, the United Party for National Development, attributed the delay to the Electoral Commission of Zambia, accusing him of election fraud.
In a news conference on Sunday, incomplete results showed that trailed behind the president, Mr. Hichilema cited irregularities in the counting in Lusaka, the capital, and demanded a recount.
"the question is, will the elections be defined as free and fair, transparent and credible in this environment?" He said. "My answer is not. "
Commission officials rejected his accusations.
M .. Hichilema, who was a presidential candidate for the fifth time, lost to Mr. Lungu 2015 by a narrow margin in a special election to complete the term of President Michael Sata who died in October 2014.
rivalry "candidates, as well as the stagnant economy of Zambia, fueled a bitter campaign marked by killings and widespread violence. Last month, the electoral commission ordered the suspension of the country for 10 days in Lusaka and another district after clashes between the two main parties.
many election observers said supporters of both parties were responsible for the violence, and criticized M . Lungu for the use of government resources, especially the police, to his advantage.
Monitors from the European Union said that, while voting itself went well on election day the campaign had been "hampered by several factors. "
in a published Saturday evaluation, the European Union said that the police had acted to" unjustly block the event of short-term opposition parties. "Furthermore, the state media new consistently shown a bias in favor of Mr. Lungu and opposition parties ignored or portrayed negatively, and "limit the possibility for voters to make an informed choice," said the union.
In what observers have described as another attempt to control news coverage, the tax authorities have closed only independent newspaper in the nation, The Post during the campaign.
Zambia, which has seen successful elections and transfers of power since 1991, was among the first African countries where multiparty democracy emerged. Until last year, Zambia, Africa's second largest copper producer after the Democratic Republic of Congo has experienced rapid economic growth due to strong demand from China.
But a slowdown in China and a collapse in copper prices led to a severe economic downturn. Now that the elections are over, Zambia should enter into discussions with the International Monetary Fund for a bailout.
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