Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera has secured his party’s backing to run for a second term in the upcoming 2025 election, but his re-election prospects may hinge on the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) finding a strong alliance partner. The MCP, which had been in an electoral alliance with the United Transformation Movement (UTM) since 2020, now faces a challenge after the UTM announced its withdrawal from the partnership following the death of its leader, former Vice President Saulos Klaus Chilima, in a plane crash in June.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Chilima and the UTM played a crucial role in helping Chakwera secure an absolute majority in the 2020 election, a requirement in Malawi’s political system for winning the presidency. During an MCP convention where his candidacy was endorsed, Chakwera expressed confidence in his party’s growing support.
“This is no ordinary convention because it is the convention of the party that will win in 2025,” Chakwera said, highlighting the MCP’s increasing strength as more people join the party.
The MCP, founded by Malawi’s first president Hastings Kamuzu Banda, returned to power in 2020 after 26 years in opposition, promising to tackle corruption and boost the economy. However, opposition parties criticize the MCP for failing to deliver on these promises, citing the country’s fragile economic situation.
Chakwera’s main challenger in the upcoming election is expected to be former President Peter Mutharika, who is likely to be endorsed by the main opposition Democratic Progress Party later this month.
