Polling station results were still being tabulated in some constituency-level centres in Zambia days after the 13 August election, amid reports of violence and disruption at several counting sites, the European Union Election Observation Mission said in an update from Lusaka.
Tabulation took place in 226 constituency “totalling centres”, and was continuing in some of them at the time of the EU mission’s statement on 19 August, the EU mission informed on Wednesday.
The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) suspended the counting and announcement of results nationwide from 12:00 to 18:00 on 14 August, citing violent incidents targeting polling staff and, in some cases, allegations of ballot box theft.
EU observers were present for the tabulation in 64 totalling centres and rated the process “very good” in 43 per cent of their observations before the suspension, with polling agents and citizen observers present in almost all the centres monitored.
After the suspension was lifted late on 14 August, observers said the conduct of tabulation deteriorated.
Staff in a “high number” of centres did not record results on tally sheets as soon as they were announced by the returning officer, as required by electoral regulations.
Reports of attacks at totalling centres
The mission reported extended breaks in the tabulation process in almost half of observations, saying returning officers appeared to wait for instructions from ECZ headquarters before announcing results.
It also said a heavy military presence in totalling centres after the suspension was reported as intimidating by “most interlocutors” and coincided with fewer party agents and citizen observers being present than before.
The EU mission pointed out that it received reports of violence at some totalling centres, including an attack by an armed group on the Makeni totalling centre in Lusaka on 15 August in which “almost all” polling station result forms were taken.
In Central Province, credible witnesses told EU observers that alleged UPND cadres raided two out of three totalling centres in Kabwe on 16 August, disrupting the tabulation process.
The ECZ launched a results website the day before the election but did not publish partial results on it.
On election day, the ECZ confirmed it would not publish disaggregated polling station results — figures broken down by individual polling stations — and preliminary presidential results were declared shortly before 03:00 on 18 August.
The EU observation mission said it remained in Zambia and continued to observe the process across all 10 provinces.
