Elections in Namibia

Namibia
This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
Namibia

Elections in Namibia gives information on election and election results in Namibia.

Namibia 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 Parliament is bicameral in nature. Until 2014 the National Assembly had 78 members of which 72 were elected by direct popular vote using the proportional representation and a maximum of 6 non-voting members are appointed by the president. The members are elected for a five-year term. Since then the number of elected seats to the National Assembly was increased to 96 to allow for wider representation of the population.[1] The National Council has 26 members, elected for a six-year term in double-seat constituencies (regions). Namibia is a democratic but one party dominant state with the South West Africa People's Organisation (SWAPO) in power.

Opposition parties are allowed, but are widely considered to have no real chance of gaining power. Upon independence of Namibia the territory inherited a populace divided along ethnic groups, and political parties representing these ethnicities. While this is also true for SWAPO which was founded to represent the Ovambo people, the ruling party has garnered national support due to its role in the fight for independence. Opposition parties have had little success in national elections, and their representation in the lower house has been dwindling steadily.[1]

Current Results

President

 Summary of the 28 November 2014 Namibian presidential election results
Candidate Party Votes %
Hage GeingobSWAPO772,52886.73
McHenry VenaaniDemocratic Turnhalle Alliance44,2714.97
Hidipo HamutenyaRally for Democracy and Progress30,1973.39
Asser MbaiNational Unity Democratic Organisation16,7401.88
Henk MudgeRepublican Party8,6760.97
Ignatius ShixwameniAll People's Party7,2660.82
Usutuaije MaamberuaSWANU5,0280.56
Ben UlengaCongress of Democrats3,5180.39
Jan MukwilongoNamibian Economic Freedom Fighters2,5140.28
Total890,738100.00
Registered voters1,241,19471.76
Source: Notemba Tjipueja (1 December 2014): Official Announcement of Final Election Results of the 2014 Presidential and National Assembly Elections, Electoral Commission of Namibia

National Assembly

 Summary of the 28 November 2014 National Assembly of Namibia election results
Parties Votes % Seats +/–
SWAPO715,02680.0177Increase23
Democratic Turnhalle Alliance42,9334.805Increase3
Rally for Democracy and Progress31,3723.513Decrease5
All People's Party20,4312.292Increase1
United Democratic Front18,9452.1220
National Unity Democratic Organisation17,9422.0120
Workers Revolutionary Party13,3281.492Increase2
SWANU6,3540.7110
Republican Party6,0990.6810
United People's Movement6,3530.711New
Congress of Democrats3,4040.380Decrease1
Namibian Economic Freedom Fighters3,2590.360New
Monitor Action Group3,0730.3400
Christian Democratic Voice2,6060.290New
National Democratic Party1,3890.1600
Democratic Party of Namibia1,1310.1300
Total893,64310096Increase24
Registered voters/turnout1,241,19472.00––
Source: Notemba Tjipueja (1 December 2014): Official Announcement of Final Election Results of the 2014 Presidential and National Assembly Elections, Electoral Commission of Namibia

History

Before Namibian independence the territory was known as South West Africa. All elections until 1978 were only for Whites,[2] but even then several parties representing the indigenous population, among them SWAPO, were excluded.[3]

The first parliamentary elections were held in Namibia between 7 and 11 November 1989. These elections were for the Constituent Assembly of Namibia, which, upon independence in March 1990, became the National Assembly of Namibia. SWAPO won as expected, gaining 41 of the 72 seats, but not with the margin that was anticipated. Support for the opposition parties Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA, 21 seats) and United Democratic Front (UDF, 4 seats) was strong in the former bantustans including Hereroland and Damaraland.[4] Since then, election results of the opposition parties have been dwindling steadily. For instance the DTA gained 15 seats in 1994, 7 seats in 1999, and 4 seats in 2004. As of 2017 the state of the opposition has been described as "on the verge of collapsing".[1]

Past elections

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Iikela, Sakeus (24 August 2017). "Where is the opposition ... when Swapo is fighting itself?". The Namibian. p. 6-7.
  2. ↑ Mudge, Dirk. The art of compromise: Constitution-making in Namibia (PDF). Konrad Adenauer Foundation. p. 126. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  3. ↑ Dierks, Klaus. "Chronology of Namibian History, 1978". klausdierks.com. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  4. ↑ Wren, Christopher S (15 November 1989). "Namibia Rebel Group Wins Vote, But It Falls Short of Full Control". The New York Times.
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