ECZ On Track To Declare In Time

Thursday may feel like a long time ago, but the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) has indicated that it is still on track to meet its deadline of an announcement of results no later than Monday 17 August. If you look back at past elections an announcement either later today or tomorrow is in line with past trends.

The temporary suspension, plus the competitive nature of the contest in some areas, as well as concerns that a largely peaceful polling day could be undermined during the counting process, means the ECZ has plenty of results to verify in the coming hours. The rise in number of constituencies from 156 to 226 for these elections won't have helped on this front.

The suspension itself was resolved swiftly but demonstrates that the ECZ is not afraid to take the action it feels may be necessary. As civil society has indicated the ECZ will need to be more forthcoming about the factors that played into the decision. In their preliminary statements yesterday, observers expressed concern with the suspension but at the same time welcomed the resumption and signalled that the ECZ has provided strong reassurance that the decision wasn’t taken lightly.

Addressing a press conference yesterday the ICGLR revealed that observers had engaged with the major political parties and the ECZ on the issue directly, stating “Upon engagement with ECZ they provided clear explanations for the suspension. They also shared measures taken to secure ballots, timelines and conditions required for resumption. The ECZ further re-committed to the release of the results within the mandated 72-hour period. As heads of missions, we were reassured by the explanation offered by the ECZ.”

The observers also communicated their intention to extend their missions so they can continue to scrutinise the process through to its conclusion. This is now an opportunity for the ECZ and Zambia to demonstrate that even at tense moments peace and unity prevail.