Hichilema Takes Early Lead in Official Zambia Results as Mundubile’s Private Count Claims Opposition Victory

LUSAKA, Zambia — President Hakainde Hichilema has taken an early lead in Zambia’s presidential election, according to the first results released by the Electoral Commission of Zambia, while a private tally being circulated by opposition candidate Brian Mundubile’s camp points to a sharply different outcome.

The ECZ’s first official results, released late Friday night, put Hichilema on 22,476 votes, representing 60.3 percent, against 14,388 votes, or 38.6 percent, for Mundubile.

Zambia’s Electoral body Chairperson Ms. Mwangala Zaloumis.

The figures are drawn from the first four constituencies formally reported by the electoral commission, making Hichilema the early leader as the national count continues.

But the official figures released so far cover only a small portion of the election, leaving the broader contest wide open.

Mundubile’s camp has meanwhile been conducting its own parallel vote tabulation and says it has processed results from 169 of Zambia’s 226 constituencies.

Its tally gives Mundubile 2,131,549 votes against 1,625,594 for Hichilema, putting the opposition candidate ahead by more than 500,000 votes in the constituencies included in its count.

Results from Mundubile Private Vote tally.

The camp says another 57 constituencies remain outstanding.

The dramatic difference between the two pictures of the election has become the central uncertainty surrounding the count. The ECZ figures are official results released through the country’s electoral process, while Mundubile’s numbers remain a camp-generated tally and have not been independently verified.

Mundubile has already declared himself the winner, despite the absence of an official national result. Hichilema has not formally conceded and has called for patience while the electoral process runs its course. The ECZ has warned candidates against prematurely declaring victory.

The competing claims come after a turbulent 24 hours in which the ECZ temporarily halted the counting and announcement of results following attacks on election officials and the theft of marked ballot papers. The commission later said the security situation had been contained and that the tallying process had resumed.

The election is being closely watched internationally. Hichilema, who came to power in 2021 after defeating Edgar Lungu, is seeking a second term against a fragmented opposition led by Mundubile. The result carries particular economic significance for Zambia, Africa’s second-largest copper producer, where Hichilema’s government has pursued debt restructuring and sought billions of dollars in new mining investment while voters continue to complain about living costs and poverty.

For now, the official numbers give Hichilema the advantage.

The opposition’s private count says Mundubile is ahead.

Neither figure represents the final national result.

The decisive numbers will come from the ECZ as counting and verification continue across the country, with Zambia waiting to see whether the early official lead for Hichilema expands or whether Mundubile’s claimed nationwide advantage survives the official count.