Maureen Mwanawasa is the widow of former Zambia

Zambia

Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....

n president Levy Mwanawasa

Levy Mwanawasa

Levy Patrick Mwanawasa was the third President of Zambia. He ruled the country from January 2002 until his death in August 2008. He is credited for having initiated a campaign to rid the country of corruption...

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Biography

As early as 2006, Mwanawasa was seen as a potential candidate for president of the country, but following her husband's death, did not file as a potential candidate to represent her husband's party in the election

Zambian presidential election, 2008

A presidential election was held in Zambia on 30 October 2008 following the death of the incumbent President Levy Mwanawasa on 19 August 2008; the election had to be called within 90 days of the date of death...

. She, however, did suddenly clash against Michael Sata

Michael Sata

Michael Chilufya Sata is a Zambian politician who has been the fifth President of Zambia since 23 September 2011. He leads the Patriotic Front , a major political party in Zambia. Under President Frederick Chiluba, Sata was a minister during the 1990s as part of the Movement for Multiparty...

 of the Patriotic Front

Patriotic Front (Zambia)

The Patriotic Front movement is the Zambian ruling political party. It is currently the most widely supported political party in Zambia. The Party was formed by Michael Sata as a breakaway party of the MMD in 2001. This was after the then-president Frederick Chiluba nominated Levy Mwanawasa as the...

 when he came to pay respects to her at her husband's funeral, resulting in Sata being forced off the premises.

She is the immediate past president of the Organisation of African First Ladies Against HIV/AIDS, and founded the Maureen Mwanawasa Community Initiative (MMCI) in 2002. She was also the joint owner of Mwanawasa & Company, her husband's law firm, until he entered into politics and left his private practice.