electionlatest news & developments
The new president-elect of Botswana is human rights lawyer Duma Boko. (Photo by Johannes Simon/Getty Images For 2nd CGDC Annual Meeting 2012)

Six decades of liberation party rule in Botswana end in shock

The Botswana Democratic Party suffered a humiliating defeat in last week’s parliamentary elections

  • Eyaaz
2 min read
The 14-day period to form a government is one of the issues that has been identified as a stumbling block in the formation of well-considered and stable coalitions. (Esa Alexander/Sowetan/Gallo Images/Getty Images)

Market on tenterhooks amid coalition talks

As the 14 days to announce a coalition government commences, investors are nervous and the rand is flat

  • Eyaaz
3 min read
Relative wealth: Business person Patrice Motsepe, who is also the brother-in-law of President Cyril Ramaphosa, is one of the country’s biggest donors to political parties. Photo: Sebastian Frej/Getty Images

Money seeks a bedfellow and we need to know who’s sleeping with who

Despite all the shiny new legislation, don’t think that party funding issues have disappeared

  • Eyaaz
10 min read

Mail & Guardian and University of Fort Hare to host National Election Debate

The Mail & Guardian in partnership with the University of Fort Hare will host a National Election Town Hall on the 17th April 2024.

  • Douglas White
2 min read
Some countries such as Tanzania still retain the death penalty

Populist death penalty calls do not pass constitutional muster

These kinds of amendments are regressive and driven by political expediency for short-term gains

  • Des Erasmus
10 min read
DA supporters. The writer says parties must take voters through their ‘thinking’ processes, not just pontificate at rallies. (Ihsaan Haffejee/Getty Images)

The need for informed policy solutions beyond election rallies

All too frequently, the solutions provided in manifestos are simplistic, time-consuming and expensive to implement

  • Eyaaz
7 min read
New broom: Senegalese president elect Bassirou Diomaye Faye at a press conference in Dakar on 25 March. Photo: John Wessels/AFP

Senegal’s Bassirou Diomaye Faye steps into presidential spotlight

The incoming head of state has promised the country profound change and left-wing pan-Africanism

  • Eyaaz
3 min read
DAKAR, SENEGAL – FEBRUARY 09: Protesters barricade a street by burning wood, tires and using iron panels as they gather at the Nation Square to stage protest against postponement of presidential election in Dakar, Senagal on February 09, 2024. Following the intervention of security forces during the protest, demonstrators set fire to many vehicles in the region and set up barricades by burning tires in some streets. (Photo by Cem Ozdel/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Senegal: Macky Sall’s latest choice less murky when seen through oil and gas

The president’s official reason for postponing the upcoming election has been met with suspicion. Analysts say: follow the money

  • Kiri Rupiah
5 min read
Not guaranteed: Prime Minister Amadou Ba is the ruling party’s presidential candidate for the February 2024 presidential election, after President Macky Sall said he would not seek a third term. Photo: Seyllou/AFP

Senegal election still anyone’s game

Although the West African country has not experienced a coup, unlike others in the region, the February vote could be marred by violence

  • Eyaaz
4 min read
No vote: The election posters may be up but many people in eastern DRC haven’t received their voters’ cards. Photo: Alexis Huguet/AFP

Ahead of DR Congo vote, people in volatile east feel abandoned

Much of the region is prey to armed groups, an aftermath of regional wars in the 1990s and 2000s

  • Eyaaz
4 min read