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2009 Namibian general election

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Namibian general election, 2009
← 2004 November 27-28, 2009 2014 →
 
Nominee Hifikepunye Pohamba Hidipo Hamutenya
Party South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) RDP
Popular vote 611,241 88,640
Percentage 75.25% 10.91%
President before election

Hifikepunye Pohamba
South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO)

Elected President

Hifikepunye Pohamba
South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO)

Politics of Namibia
Constitution
Executive
Legislature
Judiciary
Administrative divisions
Elections
Foreign relations

A presidential and parliamentary election was held on 27–28 November 2009 in Namibia. It was the fourth general election since independence and the fifth democratic election. Voting ended on 28 November and official election results, released on 4 December, showed that Hifikepunye Pohamba and his SWAPO Party were re-elected, each with over 75% of the vote.[1] Prior to the election, the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) was widely expected to score a landslide victory, with the Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) considered SWAPO's biggest challenger. Fourteen political parties competed for seats in the National Assembly of Namibia, and twelve candidates ran for the Presidency.[2]

Parties

SWAPO

The ruling SWAPO party set a goal of winning all 72 seats in the National Assembly and controlling the NA "until the second coming of Jesus Christ".[3] At the SWAPO party congress in November 2007, current President Hifikepunye Pohamba was elected President of SWAPO and also received the party's nomination for President in 2009.[4] SWAPO ended up winning 54 seats, a one-seat loss from the third National Assembly.

RDP

This was the first general election for the Rally for Democracy and Progress. The party's nominee for President was Hidipo Hamutenya, a former government minister of SWAPO. The RDP was considered the main opposition to the ruling SWAPO.[2] It gained eight seats in the National Assembly and became the Official Opposition.

NUDO

On 16 October 2009, the National Unity Democratic Organisation (NUDO) was the first political party to officially submit their candidate, Kuaima Riruako, for President.[5]

Observers

The National Society for Human Rights' observer status was withdrawn by the electoral commission, which said it was "not impartial".[6] The organisation said it would approach the High Court to contest the decision;[7] the court later ordered the commission to reinstate the organisation.[8]

Procedure

Though the country planned to buy electronic voting machines from India sometime in 2009, the Electoral Commission assured the National Assembly that they would not be used in the 2009 elections.[9]

Results

Hifikepunye Pohamba was re-elected as President of Namibia with 611,241 votes, more than six times as many as Hamutenya, his nearest rival, received.[10] Template:Namibian presidential election, 2009 Template:Namibian parliamentary election, 2009

By region

Region APP CP CoD DPN DTA MAG NMDC NDP Nudo RDP RP Swanu Swapo UDF
Caprivi 105 20 263 43 502 17 24 150 107 5,489 317 97 16,076 59
Erongo 371 29 512 96 1,337 861 87 88 2,193 9,634 876 369 40,057 6,301
Hardap 226 111 633 362 2,900 698 316 99 170 5,298 684 164 10,154 310
ǁKaras 471 79 570 746 1,789 394 65 122 318 6,970 537 255 20,345 184
Kavango 7,110 99 250 88 2,390 51 53 154 224 2,638 412 332 47,798 200
Khomas 1,138 120 1,311 235 3,775 1,447 277 177 5,458 27,461 1,812 1,016 81,336 3,398
Kunene 68 41 233 62 5,858 221 60 41 2,041 2,416 186 133 11,589 5,612
Ohangwena 34 19 140 11 88 11 23 33 55 7,967 123 357 92,447 65
Omaheke 204 51 218 87 2,141 431 653 72 5,398 3,126 582 1,016 11,603 763
Omusati 38 18 149 26 156 16 34 46 511 1,584 64 313 100,890 76
Oshana 103 125 268 28 581 29 30 39 161 6,483 96 228 75,271 86
Oshikoto 247 28 327 27 338 164 30 56 241 3,587 165 264 67,100 524
Otjozondjupa 677 63 488 130 3,518 669 117 119 7,522 7,725 669 451 26,794 1,906
Source: "Your Guide to the Results. Facts and Figures". Election supplement to The Namibian, 25 November 2014, p.2

Delay controversy

Final results were announced on 4 December, the longest delay between voting and the publication of results of any Namibian election (6 days).[11] The Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) blamed the delay on a recent amendment to the Electoral Act which had caused "logistical nightmares [they had] never experienced before" and a "cumbersome" verification process.[11] The ECN had received criticism from political parties, civil societies and the general public for the delay. Following publication of the results, 8 of the 13 opposition parties stated that they did not accept the results and were instructing their lawyers to challenge the ECN in court "for contravening the electoral law of the country".[11] Electoral observers have pronounced the polls to be free and fair but recommended that the ECN speed up the counting process and free up access to the media for all parties.[12]

Accuracy controversy

The accuracy of the results of this election has been questioned, not only by the defeated opposition parties but also by the Namibian Society of Human Rights (NSHR). The voters roll was the main subject of contention, having contained 1 181 835 entries at the time of first publication six weeks prior to the election but shrinking to 820 305 entries within a matter of days.[13] Also the voter turnout has been questioned as there were a number of constituencies that had a turnout of over 100%, on top of the list Windhoek East with 191%, Okatyali with 189%, and Ohangwena with 175%. Further "minor" concerns were people being allowed to vote on behalf of someone else, voters asked to disclose their political affiliation at polling stations, and people allowed to vote twice.[13]

References

  1. ^ Namibia president re-elected: official results AFP, 4 December 2009
  2. ^ a b Large Victory Likely for Namibia Governing Party New York Times, 28 November 2009
  3. ^ Vote SWAPO Party, Vote Pohamba for President SWAPO Party official website
  4. ^ Namibia: Pohamba for 2009 polls News 24
  5. ^ Nudo submits Presidential candidate New Era, 16 October 2009
  6. ^ Namibia hit by legal rows ahead of elections. BBC News. November 26, 2009.
  7. ^ Maletsky, Christof (November 26, 2009). Poll ban heads to court. The Namibian.
  8. ^ Namibian High Court says rights body can observe elections. Afrique en ligne. November 27, 2009.
  9. ^ Local, regional council elections shifted to 2010. The Namibian, 13 March 2009
  10. ^ "Incumbent wins big in Namibian presidential vote". Associated press. 6 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  11. ^ a b c Nyanagove, Patience (3 December 2009). "Expect full election results tomorrow – ECN". Informanté. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  12. ^ "Namibia president re-elected: official results". AFP. 4 December 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2009.
  13. ^ a b Menges, Werner (17 December 2009). "Parties file election case". The Namibian. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
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