By Ollus Ndomu
Malawi’s political landscape is shifting dramatically as former President Peter Mutharika tightens his grip on the 2025 vote count, while the governing Malawi Congress Party (MCP) refuses to concede and is preparing legal action.
The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) has so far released verified results from nine districts, showing Mutharika’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) with 451,766 votes. President Lazarus Chakwera trails at 196,938, while United Transformation Movement leader Dalitso Kabambe has 45,794.
The numbers tell a clear story. DPP is sweeping its traditional southern strongholds, with Mulanje delivering 207,596 votes for Mutharika against just over 3,000 for Chakwera. In Neno, he pulled 36,607 votes, leaving his rivals in the low thousands. Even in Salima, long seen as an MCP anchor, Mutharika edged Chakwera by more than 11,000 votes.
MCP insists the contest is far from over. Chakwera’s running mate has already alleged fraud, accusing the commission of manipulating figures and hinting at a possible court petition. “We are confident Malawians voted for change,” He told reporters, dismissing the DPP’s projected landslide as “manufactured.”
Meanwhile, Kabambe has broken ranks, issuing a statement congratulating Mutharika and urging a peaceful transfer of power. His message is seen as an early concession that bolsters DPP’s claim to victory. But within Malawi, it has also deepened the sense of division, with MCP hardliners accusing rivals of rushing to legitimize what they call “tainted results.”
The memory of Malawi’s 2019 elections, annulled by the Constitutional Court after widespread irregularities, looms large. Then, too, Mutharika was declared winner before the ruling was overturned. This time, with arrests of polling officials already reported, the credibility of the process is again under the spotlight.
Across the region, observers are watching closely. A smooth transition could reaffirm Malawi’s democratic resilience, but a disputed outcome risks plunging the country back into political turmoil.
The commission has until Wednesday to declare final results. Until then, the streets remain tense, the courts braced, and the future of Malawi’s leadership in the balance.
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