Mozambique - Elections 2024
On 09 October 2024, over 17 million Mozambicans were called to vote in the general election for the President, the National Parliament (250 seats), ten Provincial Assemblies and ten Provincial Governors. Following controversial municipal elections a year ago, with widespread irregularities denounced by national observers and the civil society, the elections took place in the context of high levels of discontent, a strong popular demand for strengthening the rule of law, and enhancing transparency of the electoral administration. Opposition parties were divided and faced a serious lack of funding, especially among extra-parliamentary parties.
Mozambique began the 45-day election campaign to choose the next president with four hopefuls looking to succeed President Filipe Nyusi. He would step down in January 2025 at the end of his second five-year term. The ruling FRELIMO’s party’s presidential candidate, Daniel Chapo, was expected to face a stiff challenge from Venancio Mondlane, who is running as an independent. The other two candidates are Ossufo Momade of the former rebel RENAMO party and Lutero Simango of the Mozambique Democratic Movement.
These would be Mozambique’s seventh general elections since the advent of multiparty democracy in 1994, two years after the government signed a peace deal with RENAMO to end a 16-year civil war that killed an estimated 1 million people. RENAMO has not won a national election since then. FRELIMO has ruled Mozambique since 1975 when the country won independence from Portugal.
Following controversial municipal elections a year ago, with widespread irregularities denounced by national observers and the civil society, the elections took place in the context of high levels of discontent, a strong popular demand for strengthening the rule of law, and enhancing transparency of the electoral administration. Opposition parties were divided and faced a serious lack of funding, especially among extra-parliamentary parties.
A total of 17,169,239 citizens were registered representing an increase of 30 % compared to the 2019 elections, in a context where projection by the National Statistics Institute (INE) indicated an adult population growth of only 17 %. Young voters, age 35 or under, accounted for 58 % of the voter register, with 20 % first-time voters. There was a notable lack of confidence in the reliability of the electoral register, given that in several provinces it reflected a higher number of voters than the overall voting age population derived from the national census.
The electoral framework is conducive to participatory elections with the adoption of the main international and regional key principles for the conduct of democratic elections. The Constitution enshrines the right to universal suffrage with direct, equal, secret, and periodic ballots. Furthermore, it establishes the obligation of the election administration to adhere to the principles of impartiality and independence.
The law provides for a two-round presidential election system. Out of a total of 250 deputies, 248 members of the Assembly of the Republic are elected by a system of proportional representation using the d'Hondt formula. The remaining two seats represent the diaspora. Term mandates are of five years. The constituency of the Provincial Assembly is the province itself. To guarantee democratic representation, the legislation stipulates that 85% of the seats are allocated, on a proportional basis, to the districts in accordance with the number of registered voters, while 15% of the seats are reserved for the provincial level. Members of the provincial assemblies are elected by proportional representation, while governors, are elected by a simple majority.
There was a notable lack of confidence in the reliability of the electoral register, given the discrepancies between the population projections of the INE and the electoral register: in several provinces the voter register reflected a higher number of voters than the overall voting age population derived from the national census. The EU EOM shares these concerns, already raised by the EU mission deployed to the 2019 election. Overall, the registration rate in-country was 104 %. It also reflected significant variation among provinces, ranging from 86 % in Niassa to 150 % in Gaza.
Mozambique experienced several incidents of serious violence and intimidation related to municipal elections in October 2023. These included some violent police reactions to protests by opposition supporters angry due to credible reports of election malfeasance and harassment of media reporting on voting and tabulation processes. In 2019 the government held national elections for president, parliament, and the provincial assembly. Domestic and international observers noted voting-day procedures were generally orderly but lacked transparency and accountability during vote tabulation. The EU, the Commonwealth of Nations, and civil society organizations reported significant irregularities, including the arrest and intimidation of some opposition observers; intentional spoiling of ballots; vote falsification; and inordinately high voter turnout in some districts that indicated ballot-box stuffing. Opposition parties and civil society complained of acts of violence, intimidation, and bias by the government and Frelimo operatives.
Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: unlawful or arbitrary killings, including extrajudicial killings; enforced disappearances; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest or detention; serious abuses in a conflict, including unlawful and widespread civilian deaths or harm, abductions, physical abuses, and conflict-related sexual violence or punishment; unlawful use of child soldiers by nonstate actors; serious restrictions on freedom of expression and media freedom, including violence and threats of violence against journalists and unjustified arrests or prosecutions of journalists; substantial interference with the freedom of peaceful assembly; serious government corruption; extensive gender-based violence and a lack of investigation of and accountability for such violence; and the existence of the worst forms of child labor.
The Frelimo candidate to replace Nyusi is the relatively unknown provincial governor, 47-year-old Daniel Chapo, who also called for calm after he cast his ballot. His election would mark a generational change: he would be the first Mozambican president born after independence from Portugal in 1975 and the first not to have fought in the devastating 16-year civil war between Frelimo and Renamo. FRELIMO’s Daniel Chapo emphasized that he was born into a poor family that lived for two years in captivity during Mozambique’s civil war and overcame adversities to become a public servant. Chapo said he is the right man to reverse the country's economic fortunes. “We want to combat bureaucracy, combat corruption and create laws that facilitate a good business environment,” he said, “so that investors, whether national or foreign, can come and invest in Mozambique.” With this investment, he said, there would be more jobs, more salaries and companies would pay more taxes.
Running under the slogan "Save Mozambique!, this country is ours!" Venâncio Mondlane started his campaign in a Maputo suburb, where he promised to create an honest and transparent government and remove Mozambique from the list of the poorest countries in the world. “We want to put an end to a partisan state once and for all,” he said. “We want a clean state, a state that works for the people and by the people. We want the resources exploited in the provinces to be used in projects in the provinces to develop those regions.”
The head of the National Electoral Commission, Carlos Matsinhe, called for peaceful elections and asked that everyone abide by election rules to avoid possible post-electoral conflicts. “Let us not use the electoral campaign to promote disorder, incitement to hatred, moral violence that has led to insults and defamation,” he said. “We must also avoid physical violence and/or other forms of injustice, as all competitors are compatriots and only occasional adversaries.”
Reverend Marcos Macamo appealed to the candidates to not dwell on the past to settle old scores. “The issue must not be power, power. It must be the nation to move forward,” Macamo said. “If we come to an agreement, whoever wins, the nation will move forward. With you, I or both of us, let it happen.” The issue isn’t so much why the country is not moving forward or who is to blame, he said, “but what will you or I do to overcome the situation? Because these wounds of the past are complicating the situation.”
Radio is the most important media in Mozambique, followed by television and newspapers. Rádio Moçambique (RM) is the main source of information reaching 90% of the country, broadcasting through community radio stations. Freedom of expression was generally respected through the campaign period. Public media Televisão Mozambique (TVM) and Radio Mozambique offered to citizens daily reports on campaign activities by the different candidates. However, no opinion or debate programs were broadcast, limiting the informative offer presented to voters and their capacity to make an informed choice. Coverage by both national radio and TV was biased in favour of FRELIMO and Chapo.
The use of social media in Mozambique is limited. Internet penetration rate in the country is 23 %, meaning that 26.4 million people in Mozambique remain offline. Despite this, social media has been vital for the visibility of Mozambican actors who do not have access to traditional media, namely opposition parties. All four presidential candidates were present in the social media, with Facebook as the prevalent platform for campaigning. Most of the competitors did not demonstrate a clearly defined communication strategy. Only Chapo employed a cross-platform approach to gain more votes. Mondlane and Chapo were by far the most active candidates posting videos, reels, campaign spots and live streaming of rallies and campaign activities. According to reports by EU observers, parties and candidates at provincial and district level rarely used social networks for campaigning.
The European Union ambassador to Mozambique said 24 August 2024 it would send a mission of 130 observers to monitor the elections. EU Election Observation Missions (EOMs), follow a long-term observation methodology, with Core Team experts and long-term observers arriving in the country several weeks before Election Day and remaining afterwards to follow counting and tabulation. On Election Day, observers visit polling stations to assess the opening, voting, counting and aggregation of results. The observation is conducted according to the principles of independence, full coverage, impartiality, transparency, professionalism and non-interference in the process.
A Preliminary Statement is presented by the Chief Observer at a press conference, usually 48 hours after Election Day. This statement is based on the observation of the entire process up to the voting. The Final Report contains the EOM's overall assessment of the electoral process and recommendations for the improvement of future electoral processes. It is delivered to national authorities and stakeholders, and made public during the Return Visit of the Chief Observer around two months after the EOM has left the country.
The 43 days campaign was competitive and calm with a limited number of election-related incidents reported by the observers. Fundamental freedoms were generally respected, apart from some instances of obstruction of the opposition’s campaign3. EU observers and interlocutors reported an evident tilting of the playing field in favour of the ruling party, which benefited from the advantages of incumbency through the misuse of state resources. There were also some reports of RENAMO and MDM making use of public resources. Summoning of civil servants and teachers to participate in FRELIMO’s campaign activities was reported in all provinces, except Maputo City, Gaza, and Manica.
At the campaign events observed, security forces did not overstep their functions and no serious instance of inflammatory language was recorded. Most campaign promises made by candidates involved fighting corruption, tackling the insurgency in Cabo Delgado, promoting youth employment, building roads, improving education, health services, access to water, and investing in agriculture. The tone of the campaign was joyful, and besides traditional door-to-door campaigning and caravans, FRELIMO, RENAMO and MDM favoured rallies while Mondlane gave priority to marches.
Registered political forces benefited from public and private funding for their election campaigns. The law is relatively permissive regarding the sources of campaign funding and does not define ceilings on campaign spending. This provides leeway for parties to benefit from undeclared services from the private sector. Public funding of MZN 260 million (EUR 3.7 million) for campaigning was allocated by the CNE for the three elections: a third to the four presidential candidates in equal portions; a third to parliamentary candidates, and the same amount to candidates for provincial assemblies. The ability of smaller parties to conduct a nationwide campaign from the start was hampered by the lack of financial resources and the two-week delay for the release of public funds.
The 9 October presidential, legislative, and provincial assembly elections in Mozambique were held in a generally peaceful environment. Following the controversies that surrounded the 2023 municipal polls, the elections took place in the context of high levels of discontent and a strong popular demand for strengthening the rule of law and enhancing electoral administration. Overall, the electoral management bodies, the CNE (National Elections Commission) and Technical Secretariat for Electoral Administration (STAE), conducted the voting in an orderly manner. Most opposition political parties expressed lack of confidence in the impartiality and independence of the CNE and the STAE, and their ability to oversee and conduct the electoral process independently and with transparency. Furthermore, parties expressed mistrust in other public institutions, including the Constitutional Council (CC), the apex of the judicial electoral system. The CNE’s lack of public communication strategy and outreach contributed to this mistrust.
After casting his vote, opposition candidate Venancio Mondlane was critical about the process, describing the electoral commission as "corrupt people, crooks, scoundrels." "People are not going to accept this kind of theft, this kind of shamelessness, this kind of electoral banditry," Mondlane told reporters outside a polling station. Popular among young voters, Mondlane was until June part of the main opposition party Renamo before joining the smaller Optimistic Party for the Development of Mozambique (Podemos).
Rights groups accused Mozambican authorities of clamping down on dissent in the run-up to the election and have also previously accused the security forces of using deadly force to break up peaceful protests. Police broke up a post-election march by Mondlane supporters in the central city of Nampula, while there was a large police presence on the streets of Maputo.
Frelimo candidate Daniel Chapo held a clear lead in the presidential race, according to preliminary results. Chapo is expected to be announced as the winner to succeed President Filipe Nyusi, who has served a maximum of two terms.
PODEMOS is a relatively new opposition party that challenged the 49-year rule of the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo) party in the Oct. 9 election. Although Mondlane ran for president as an independent, he was supported by PODEMOS. Mondlane, PODEMOS and other opposition parties have accused Frelimo of electoral fraud and rigging the election. Elvino Dias, a lawyer and advisor to opposition presidential candidate Venancio Mondlane, was killed 18 October 2024 by gunmen in two vehicles who riddled his car with bullets in the city of Maputo, the PODEMOS opposition party said. Paulo Guambe, a senior member and the spokesperson for PODEMOS, also was in the car with Dias and died in the shooting, the party said in a statement. The shooting happened just before midnight on Avenue Joaquim Chissano near the Russian Embassy, according to a local resident, who said he heard the gunshots. The resident, who asked not to be identified, said he was close enough to smell the gunpowder in the air after the shooting. He said he heard a steady sequence of around five shots followed a few seconds later by another round of five shots.
The eventual winner would have to deal with the long-running insurgency in the oil- and gas-rich province of Cabo Delgado as well as widespread corruption.
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