ECZ confirms suspension delays 72-hour deadline

The Electoral Commission of Zambia has confirmed that Friday’s 24-hour suspension of vote counting will extend the constitutional deadline for declaring Zambia’s presidential result, as the Commission set out a revised schedule for announcing outstanding constituency figures.…

The Electoral Commission of Zambia has confirmed that Friday’s 24-hour suspension of vote counting will extend the constitutional deadline for declaring Zambia’s presidential result, as the Commission set out a revised schedule for announcing outstanding constituency figures.

Briefing the nation at the National Election Results Centre, the Commission’s Chief Electoral Officer said four constituencies had been declared so far following the resumption of counting on 14 August: one in Lusaka province, Chisamba in Central province, Dongwe in Mufumbwe district of North-Western province, and Kundabwika in Kaputa district of Luapula province.

Two further rounds of announcements were scheduled for 15 August.

“The first announcement will be at 13 hours and the second one at 20 hours this evening,” the officer said, adding that verification of incoming results was continuing as more constituencies reported in.

The Commission confirmed that the legally mandated 72-hour window for declaring the presidential result, running from the close of the last polling station at 02:00 hours, would be affected by the suspension period.

Responding to a question from Maurice Ndoma of Transparency International Zambia on what the suspension meant for the original timeline, which had pointed to a declaration by Monday, the Commission acknowledged the delay was now factored into its calculations.

The briefing also turned to security. A civic monitor told the Commission that a tallying centre in Mansa had been vandalised, with windows shattered and an ECZ lamp destroyed, and that a polling official had been injured and later replaced. He asked what steps were being taken to protect remaining staff at the site.

“We’re working very closely with the law enforcement agencies to ensure that the remaining stages of the process are protected and proceed as scheduled,” the Chief Electoral Officer said.

Misinformation featured prominently in the exchange that followed. One participant described how stakeholders in his constituency had convened to verify claims about tampered ballot papers, only to confirm that the papers deployed to polling stations matched those inspected beforehand. He urged the public to check directly with the Commission rather than act on unverified claims.

On parliamentary results, officials clarified a key distinction from the presidential race: National Assembly outcomes are declared and finalised at constituency level by each returning officer across all 226 constituencies.

“If you come across parliamentary results, do a quick check. Does it indicate that it is a declaration of results? If it says anything else, ignore it. It is not the final result,” the officer said, noting that presidential figures were being prioritised nationally, with consolidated parliamentary numbers to follow.

Asked how many further constituencies would be announced at each session, the Commission declined to give a specific figure but said the volume of incoming results was increasing and that verification was proceeding smoothly.

The confirmation that the suspension has pushed back the original 72-hour window leaves Zambians facing a longer wait for the presidential outcome than first indicated, even as the Commission works through a growing backlog of constituency results under continued security concerns at some counting centres.