Overview
- Roughly 7–7.2 million registered voters were called to cast ballots on 16 September in concurrent presidential and legislative elections, with polling hours from 06:00 to 16:00 local time.
- Seventeen candidates are on the presidential ballot, though analysts say the race largely centers on incumbent Lazarus Chakwera, 70, and his predecessor Peter Mutharika, 85.
- About 60% of registered voters are under 35, and civil-society groups mounted turnout drives as many young Malawians voiced disenchantment with the choices.
- Persistent fuel shortages linked to a lack of foreign currency and heavy trade deficits have produced long queues at petrol stations, underscoring voters’ economic frustrations.
- If no candidate secures more than 50% of the vote, a runoff must be held within 60 days, in a system shaped by the 2019 annulment and the 2020 rerun that brought Chakwera to power with about 59%.