Elections in Mozambique
Encyclopedia
Elections in Mozambique gives information on election
and election results in Mozambique
.
Mozambique elects on national level a head of state
- the president
- and a legislature
. The president is elected for a five year term by the people. The Assembly of the Republic
(Assembleia da República) has 250 members, elected for a five year term by proportional representation
.
Mozambique has a two-party system
, which means that there are two dominant political parties
, with extreme difficulty for anybody to achieve electoral success under the banner of any other party. The Mozambique voters are the ones that vote for the people that are elected into office.
, in 1994, FRELIMO candidate and president of Mozambique since 1986 Joaquim Chissano
was elected and the opposition party and former guerillia group RENAMO acknowledged the result. The United Nations Security Council
, which had a peacekeeping operation based there
due to the civil war, endorsed the results as free and fair in Resolution 960
.
from FRELIMO was re-elected with 52.3% of the vote, and FRELIMO secured 133 of 250 parliamentary seats. The main opposition parties candidate, RENAMO's Afonso Dhlakama
, got 47.7% and the party won the remaining 117 parliamentary seats.
, the new FRELIMO candidate, won expectedly with 63.7% of the votes, more than twice as many as RENAMO candidate Afonso Dhlakama
(31.7%).
In the parliamentary election FRELIMO won 62% (1.8 million) of the votes, RENAMO 29.7% (905,000 votes) and 18 minor parties shared the remaining eight per cent. FRELIMO will hold 160 of the parliamentary seats, RENAMO 90.
The elections have been criticized for not having been conducted in a fair and transparent manner by the National Electoral Commission (CNE), several cases of electoral fraud
have occurred and remained unsanctioned. This has been criticized among others by the European Union Election Observation Mission to Mozambique and the Carter Center. However, the elections shortcomings have probably not (also according to EU observers) affected the final result in the presidential election. The distribution of parliamentary seats among the parties will have been somewhat altered though (RENAMO probably losing a number of seats to FRELIMO).
On February 2, 2005 Guebuza was sworn in as president of the republic, but without Dhlakama and RENAMO's recognition and presence at the inauguration. RENAMO have, however, agreed to participate in the Parliament and the Council of State.
, the FRELIMO and the RENAMO contested in all 13 parliamentary constituencies, but the newly formed Democratic Movement of Mozambique
was able to contest in only 4 parliamentary constituencies.
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
and election results in Mozambique
Politics of Mozambique
Politics of Mozambique takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Mozambique is head of state and head of government of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government...
.
Mozambique elects on national level a head of state
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
- the president
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
- and a legislature
Legislature
A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...
. The president is elected for a five year term by the people. The Assembly of the Republic
Assembly of the Republic of Mozambique
The unicameral Assembly of the Republic is the legislative body of Mozambique.The first President of the National Assembly of the People's Republic of Mozambique was President Samora Moises Machel...
(Assembleia da República) has 250 members, elected for a five year term by proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
.
Mozambique has a two-party system
Two-party system
A two-party system is a system where two major political parties dominate voting in nearly all elections at every level of government and, as a result, all or nearly all elected offices are members of one of the two major parties...
, which means that there are two dominant political parties
Political Parties
Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy is a book by sociologist Robert Michels, published in 1911 , and first introducing the concept of iron law of oligarchy...
, with extreme difficulty for anybody to achieve electoral success under the banner of any other party. The Mozambique voters are the ones that vote for the people that are elected into office.
1994
In the first democratic elections held in MozambiqueMozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
, in 1994, FRELIMO candidate and president of Mozambique since 1986 Joaquim Chissano
Joaquim Chissano
Joaquim Alberto Chissano served as the second President of Mozambique for nineteen years from 6 November 1986 until 2 February 2005. Since stepping down as president, Chissano has become an elder statesman and is called upon by international bodies, such as the United Nations, to be an envoy or...
was elected and the opposition party and former guerillia group RENAMO acknowledged the result. The United Nations Security Council
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
, which had a peacekeeping operation based there
United Nations Operation in Mozambique
The United Nations Operations in Mozambique was established in October 1992 under Security Council Resolution 797 on the basis of a report submitted by the Secretary-General....
due to the civil war, endorsed the results as free and fair in Resolution 960
United Nations Security Council Resolution 960
United Nations Security Council Resolution 960, adopted unanimously on November 21, 1994, after reaffirming Resolution 782 and all subsequent resolutions on Mozambique, the Council welcomed and endorsed the recent elections on October 27-29, 1994 in accordance with the Rome General Peace Accords,...
.
1999
In the elections in late 1999 President Joaquim ChissanoJoaquim Chissano
Joaquim Alberto Chissano served as the second President of Mozambique for nineteen years from 6 November 1986 until 2 February 2005. Since stepping down as president, Chissano has become an elder statesman and is called upon by international bodies, such as the United Nations, to be an envoy or...
from FRELIMO was re-elected with 52.3% of the vote, and FRELIMO secured 133 of 250 parliamentary seats. The main opposition parties candidate, RENAMO's Afonso Dhlakama
Afonso Dhlakama
Afonso Marceta Macacho Dhlakama is a Mozambican politician and the leader of RENAMO, an anti-communist guerrilla organization that fought the FRELIMO government in the Mozambican Civil War before signing a peace agreement and becoming an opposition political party in the early 1990s.Dhlakama was...
, got 47.7% and the party won the remaining 117 parliamentary seats.
2004 - Presidential and Parliamentary election
In the 1-2 December 2004 election Armando GuebuzaArmando Guebuza
Armando Emílio Guebuza is a Mozambican politician and the President of Mozambique since 2005.- Career :Armando Emílio Guebuza was born in 20 January 1943 in Portuguese East Africa...
, the new FRELIMO candidate, won expectedly with 63.7% of the votes, more than twice as many as RENAMO candidate Afonso Dhlakama
Afonso Dhlakama
Afonso Marceta Macacho Dhlakama is a Mozambican politician and the leader of RENAMO, an anti-communist guerrilla organization that fought the FRELIMO government in the Mozambican Civil War before signing a peace agreement and becoming an opposition political party in the early 1990s.Dhlakama was...
(31.7%).
In the parliamentary election FRELIMO won 62% (1.8 million) of the votes, RENAMO 29.7% (905,000 votes) and 18 minor parties shared the remaining eight per cent. FRELIMO will hold 160 of the parliamentary seats, RENAMO 90.
The elections have been criticized for not having been conducted in a fair and transparent manner by the National Electoral Commission (CNE), several cases of electoral fraud
Electoral fraud
Electoral fraud is illegal interference with the process of an election. Acts of fraud affect vote counts to bring about an election result, whether by increasing the vote share of the favored candidate, depressing the vote share of the rival candidates or both...
have occurred and remained unsanctioned. This has been criticized among others by the European Union Election Observation Mission to Mozambique and the Carter Center. However, the elections shortcomings have probably not (also according to EU observers) affected the final result in the presidential election. The distribution of parliamentary seats among the parties will have been somewhat altered though (RENAMO probably losing a number of seats to FRELIMO).
On February 2, 2005 Guebuza was sworn in as president of the republic, but without Dhlakama and RENAMO's recognition and presence at the inauguration. RENAMO have, however, agreed to participate in the Parliament and the Council of State.
2009 - Presidential and Parliamentary election
The Presidential and Parliamentary elections were held on October 28, 2009 for the fourth time since the introduction of the multy-party system. In the elections for the Assembly of the RepublicAssembly of the Republic
The Assembly of the Republic is the Portuguese parliament. It is located in a historical building in Lisbon, referred to as Palácio de São Bento, the site of an old Benedictine monastery...
, the FRELIMO and the RENAMO contested in all 13 parliamentary constituencies, but the newly formed Democratic Movement of Mozambique
Democratic Movement of Mozambique
The Democratic Movement of Mozambique is a political party in Mozambique. Founded on March 6, 2009, it is led by Daviz Simango, who is the mayor of Beira...
was able to contest in only 4 parliamentary constituencies.