Zambia: Elections 2026 – Is Zambia’s Democratic Success Story Beginning to Fray?

There is a danger that voters see the August election outcome as shaped by legal manoeuvring rather than the ballot.

Zambia is one of the few African countries to have experienced peaceful transfers of power between multiple political parties. But its sound democratic record – particularly the Electoral Commission of Zambia’s (ECZ) technical capacity – will be tested during the upcoming general elections on 13 August.

According to the 2025 Economist Intelligence Unit Democracy Index, Zambia ranks…