Malawi president narrowly wins reelection
May 27, 2019
Malawi President Peter Mutharika narrowly secured a second five-year term in office after winning the country's presidential election with 38.57% of the vote.
Lazarus Chakwera of the opposition Malawi Congress Party finished second with 35.41%, while Deputy President Saulos Chilima finished third at 20.24%.
Read more: Who are Malawi's top presidential contenders?
The president and parliamentary elections took place last Tuesday, with results expected over the weekend. However, Malawi's electoral commission stopped releasing results updates on Friday after receiving 147 complaints of voting irregularities, including results sheets with sections blotted out or altered with correction fluid.
On Saturday, Malawi's High Court granted an opposition injunction and ordered a partial election recount. The court lifted the injunction on Monday, and the electoral commission confirmed Mutharika's narrow victory.
Mutharika, a former law professor, came to power in 2014. He is credited with improving infrastructure and lowering inflation in the southeastern African country. However, he has recently faced accusations of corruption and favoring rural regions, where his support is strongest.
dv/ng (AFP, Reuters)