Hakainde Hichilema wins second term as Zambia president with 60% of vote

Election outcome and vote breakdown

The Electoral Commission of Zambia declared Hakainde Hichilema the winner of the presidential election in the early hours of Tuesday, 18 August 2026. Official results showed the 64-year-old incumbent secured 2,965,326 votes, representing between 60% and 61.4% of valid ballots cast. His main challenger, lawyer and member of parliament Brian Mundubile, finished second with 1,856,217 votes, roughly 38%. A total of 14 presidential candidates ran in the election, for which 8.7 million citizens were registered to vote. Electors also cast ballots to fill 226 seats in the National Assembly.

Irregularities and observer reports

The vote took place on Thursday, 13 August 2026, and counting was halted nationwide for several hours on Friday after reports of attacks against election workers and stolen ballots. The Southern African Development Community observer mission stated that the counting suspension created uncertainty, citing incidents of intimidation, physical assaults, abductions, and property damage across five provinces. European Union election observers reported that the process favored the incumbent and took place within a restricted democratic space. Police searched the home of Mundubile and detained several opposition figures, accusing them of militia involvement, before releasing them. Mundubile had declared himself the winner on Friday and lodged complaints regarding the tallying process.

Economic recovery and domestic challenges

Hichilema, who leads the United Party for National Development, won the presidency in 2021 after five previous election defeats against former president Edgar Lungu. His first administration prioritized repairing government finances after Zambia defaulted on its sovereign debt in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. During that five-year term, the administration restructured foreign obligations with bilateral and private creditors and introduced free secondary education, which brought an estimated 2.3 million children into schools. Opposition leaders argued that economic gains had not reached ordinary households, pointing to ongoing food insecurity, high living costs, and severe droughts that caused power shortages and weakened the kwacha. Hichilema pledged in his campaign to double the size of the national economy and expand mining output in Africa's second-largest copper producer.

IMF negotiations and investor outlook

Financial markets responded steadily to the election outcome, with Zambia's 2033 dollar bond bid at 97.72 cents on the dollar on Tuesday. The government plans to secure a new International Monetary Fund financing package before the end of 2026, following the expiration of a $1.7 billion arrangement in January. Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane stated before the vote that direct foreign investment is required to accelerate economic growth and employment, though the treasury will hold off on returning to international commercial debt markets.

For investors, Hichilema offers continuity.

Investment analysts noted that establishing future debt issuances would provide pricing benchmarks for domestic companies seeking capital.

If they were to reissue debt in the international market, that would also be a good thing because it would give the companies in the country a benchmark to price debt off.