LIVE BLOG: Angola Elections

Chad Williams|Published 2 years ago

Angola's President and leader of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) ruling party Joao Lourenco casts his vote in a general election in the capital Luanda, Angola August 24, 2022. AP

EFF wishes ‘sister country’ Angola peaceful and fair elections

The EFF has wished Angola a peaceful and fair election period as the nation goes to its fifth general elections to elect the president and National Assembly since the introduction of multiparty democratic dispensation in 1991.

“The 10 years of civil war that ended in 2002, after Jonas Savimbi disputed the 1992 elections results, has taken the country numerous steps back from the attainment of an Angola free from colonial and imperial influence,” the South African political party said in a statement on Wednesday.

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A view of a ballot paper during the general election at Nzinga Mbandi school in the capital Luanda, Angola August 24, 2022. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko

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Adalberto Costa Junior, the charismatic leader of the main opposition National Union for the Total Liberation of Angola, or UNITA casts his vote in Angola’s General Elections.

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14.3 million Angolans set to go to the polls in highly competitive general election

The August 24 general election, with a total of eight candidates vying for the presidency, will be the fifth of its kind since democratic elections were first introduced in 1992 in the southern African country.

The eight candidates, who are running on the tickets of seven political parties and a coalition this year, are contesting what's expected to be the most competitive election since 1992.

The eight participating parties will battle for the 220 seats in the National Assembly.

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Xinhua

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Angola,
General election today:

➤ Polls open: 7 AM — 5 PM local (6 AM — 4 PM GMT)
➤ Voters: 14,399,391
➤ Terms: 5 years
➤ Voting system: double simultaneous vote
FPTP (presidential)
nationwide and regionwide PR (parliamentary)

➤ https://t.co/DuzEGUnxSo pic.twitter.com/UD6yANAtUy
— Africa Elects (@AfricaElect) August 24, 2022

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The two leading contenders vying for Angola's presidency

The contest for the presidency is set to be a two-horse race between incumbent Joao Lourenco, who heads the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, or MPLA, and Adalberto Costa Junior, the charismatic leader of the main opposition National Union for the Total Liberation of Angola, or UNITA.

Both have outlined similar proposals to reduce living costs, create jobs, tackle graft and reduce the role the state plays in the economy.

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Residents of Luanda hopeful for smooth, peaceful polls

Hope is the dominant note of those preparing to go to vote. There are more than 14 million Angolans eligible to vote so as to elect the president and 220 members of parliament simultaneously, with a single mark on the ballot paper.

“I hope I can see improvement in certain aspects, improvement in many things.” another Luanda resident said.

Despite the eight general election contenders and the media respecting the reflection period, much information remains available on the internet. Propaganda has been prominent in the campaigns leading up to this polls.

“I believe some information and some I don’t. There is false information, too.” a young Angolan man told Monteiro.

The Maravi Post

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A woman casts her ballot at a polling station in Luanda on August 24, 2022, during Angola's general elections. - Angolans started casting ballots on August 24, 2022 in what is expected to be the most competitive vote in its democratic history, with incumbent president Joao Lourenco squaring up against charismatic opposition leader Adalberto Costa Junior. (Photo by JOHN WESSELS / AFP)

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Angolans to vote in tight race that could affect pro-Russia ties

Angolans will vote on Wednesday in a tight race in which the main opposition coalition has its best-ever chance of victory, as millions of youth left out of its oil-fuelled booms are expected to express frustration with nearly five decades of MPLA rule.

The ruling party remains favourite, though the margin is narrow enough for a surprise UNITA victory, which could shift relations with global superpowers -- with possibly less friendly ties with Russia.

Since independence from Portugal in 1975, Angola has been run by the formerly Marxist People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), led since 2017 by President Jaoa Lourenco.

Reuters

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Angola — one of Africa’s largest oil producers — is preparing for a general election Wednesday and voters are debating whether they should vote and sit at the polling stations to monitor the process or cast their ballots and go home. https://t.co/ModZv5wzyW
— AP Africa (@AP_Africa) August 23, 2022

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SADC launches electoral observer mission ahead of Wednesday polls in Angola

Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of International Relations and Co-operation of Namibia and Head of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Electoral Observer Mission (SEOM) launched the SEOM for the August 24 General Elections in Angola at the Epic Sana Hotel in Luanda on Monday.

Following an invitation extended by the National Electoral Commission (CNE) of the Republic of Angola to SADC, the chairperson of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Co-operation deployed the SEOM to the Republic of Angola from August 11 to September 9 to observe the general elections.

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Angola's President and leader of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) ruling party, Joao Lourenco, gestures after castsing his vote in the general election in the capital Luanda, Angola August 24, 2022. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko

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Members of the media jostle for space as Angola's President and leader of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) ruling party, Joao Lourenco, casts his vote in the general election in the capital Luanda, Angola August 24, 2022. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko

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Angola’s #MPLA seems unwilling to stop using state resources to manipulate elections.

New report on what can still be done by @BorgesNhamirre @SADC_News https://t.co/oQK6ewjzCk pic.twitter.com/Au4UEhSshj
— ISS (@issafrica) August 20, 2022

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Namibian minister launches SADC poll observer mission to Angola

Namibia’s International Relations and Cooperation Minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has launched the Southern African Development Community (SADC) election observer mission that is monitoring general elections in neighbouring Angola.

Nandi-Ndaitwah, who is chairperson of the SADC Ministerial Committee of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation, is leading a 52-member SADC electoral observation mission (SEOM) launched on Monday in the Angolan capital Luanda.

Speaking during the launch, the Namibian minister said the mission is expected to observe the August 24 Angola general elections based on a three-tier electoral observation approach that involves pre-election assessments, assessments during elections and post-election assessments.

Agence de Presse Africaine

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