Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera conceded defeat in the country’s presidential election, acknowledging that his rival, Peter Mutharika, had an insurmountable lead.
President Chakwera made the announcement on Wednesday during a national address, hours before the electoral authority was set to release the final results of the September 16 election.
Chakwera also called Mutharika to congratulate him on his victory and wishing him well in his upcoming tenure as the seventh President of the Republic of Malawi.
The concession comes after partial results showed Mutharika building a commanding lead over Chakwera, with over 50 per cent of the votes cast.
Chakwera’s Malawi Congress Party had been in power since 2020, when he defeated Mutharika in a re-run election after the constitutional court annulled Mutharika’s 2019 election victory due to irregularities.
The election was dominated by the dire state of Malawi’s economy, with critics accusing Chakwera of mismanagement and indecisiveness.
Inflation reached 33 per cent during his term, and the price of staple food maize and fertilizer jumped significantly.
The economy had been struggling, with the World Bank estimating that nearly three-quarters of Malawians live on less than $3 a day.
Chakwera pledged to ensure a peaceful transfer of power, saying, “In the days that remain, I want you to know that I am committed to a peaceful transfer of power.”
His concession is seen as a rare example of an incumbent president accepting defeat before the final tally, similar to former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan’s concession in 2015.
