Botswana General Elections 2024 Begin
Voters in Botswana made their way to polling stations on October 30, 2024, to cast their votes in the country's general elections.
The general elections entail the following.
First, election of 61 new members of parliament (MPs) for the country's 69-seat National Assembly alias Parliament. The other 8 seats of the National Assembly are reserved for 6 nominated MPs, and 2 ex-officio MPs. The latter are the President and the Speaker.
Image: National Assembly Complex, Downtown Gaborone, Botswana
Second, election of new councillors for 609 local council seats.
Third, creating the premises for the election of the next President of Botswana. That is because by the country's electoral system, next president is not elected directly by voters but rather later by 61 new MPs they elect during general elections.
The new President of Botswana will therefore be elected after the general elections, by newly elected members of the National Assembly. However, aspiring presidential nominees must be validated by the country's High Court prior to the general elections. For the 2024 General Elections, there 4 validated presidential nominees, namely the following.
Incumbent President Mokgweetsi Masisi of Botswana Democratic Party (BDP)
Duma Boko of Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC)
Dumelang Saleshando of Botswana Congress Party (BCP)
Mephato Reatile of Botswana Patriotic Party (BPF)
Often, the presidential nominee whose political party gets majority seats in the National Assembly will become the next president. Otherwise, parliamentary decision about who takes the top political position may be determined by coalition of political parties.
Botswana is said to be one of a handful of true multi-party democracies in Africa. The other few include South Africa, Senegal, and Ghana.
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