Zambian president-elect Hichilema's party wins majority of seats parliament
Lusaka, Zambia (PANA) – Zambia's United Party for National Development (UPND), the party of Zambia’s president-elect, Hakainde Hichilema, has won the majority of seats in parliament after last Thursday's general elections.
The party won 82 constituencies, securing a majority of four in the National Assembly, official results announced by the Electoral Commission of Zambia show.
Opposition leader Hichilema won a landslide victory in the poll that swept away President Edgar Lungu.
The UPND stole a number of key seats from outgoing President Lungu's Patriotic Front (PF).
These include Lusaka Central, which has been represented by the PF since 2006. UPND also scored victories in traditional PF heartlands.
Overall, the party of outgoing Lungu won 63 seats. Ten seats will be represented by independent candidates and one seat - Nalolo constituency in Western Province - by Mr. Wamunyima Imanga of the Party for National Unity and Progress (PNUP).
Kaumbwe constituency in Eastern Province is yet to hold an election following the death of UPND candidate Petauke Bornface Khondowe in July.
The results follow Monday’s announcement that UPND leader Hichilema had been elected president, beating incumbent Lungu by a margin of 996,556 votes.
The new president-elect came out on top in six of Zambia’s ten provinces, delivering a strong performance in the key battlegrounds of Lusaka and the Copperbelt where it has taken Chifubu constituency in the PF stronghold of Ndola.
The election received unprecedented turnout, with 71% of registered voters casting their ballots in presidential, parliamentary and local elections.
-0- PANA AR/MA 18Aug2021
