The 2023 Mozambican local elections were held on 11 October 2023 to elect mayors and municipal councils across the country. The results published initially by the National Election Commission (CNE) had

FRELIMO FRELIMO (; from , ) is a democratic socialist political party in Mozambique. It has governed the country since its independence from Portugal in 1975. Founded in 1962, FRELIMO began as a nationalist movement fighting for the self-determination ...

winning 64 of the 65 municipalities contested, with the only city won by another party being Beira, which was won by the Democratic Movement of Mozambique. Tensions rose prior to the elections, with the police arresting members of the opposition in several cities. On October 27, after the provisional election results came out, protests broke out in several major cities such as

Nampula Nampula is the capital city of Nampula Province in Northern Mozambique. With a population of 743,125 (2017 census), it is the third-largest city in Mozambique after Maputo and Matola. The city is located in the interior of Nampula Province, appro ...

and

Maputo Maputo () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088,449 (as of 2017) distributed ov ...

in reaction to alleged fraud in the election.

Conduct

The United States embassy in Mozambique acknowledged credible reports of irregularities in the elections, and called for the CNR to ensure that "votes are counted accurately and transparently." The NGO Maise Integredade, which sent over 2000 observers across the country, reported irregularities at polling stations in several municipalities, including ballot stuffing and voter intimidation. Additionally, some areas of the country reported experiencing internet shutdowns following the elections. Several district courts in Maputo recognized irregularities at

polling station A polling place is where voters cast their ballots in elections. The phrase polling station is also used in American English, British English and Canadian English although a polling place is the building and polling station is the specific ...

s and canceled voting. Similarly, in Chókwè, Gaza Province, local courts invalidated election results, however this was overturned by the Mozambican Constitutional Counsel who claimed sole authority to validate election results. Courts in Cuamba, Niassa Province, as well as KaMpfumo,

annulled the results in the elections in reaction to petitions by RENAMO.

Protests

On 27 October 2023, protests occurred throughout Mozambique after RENAMO called for nationwide demonstrations after several courts found voting irregularities. At least three people have been killed by security forces, including a 10-year-old boy in

Nampula Province Nampula is a Provinces of Mozambique, province of northern Mozambique. It has an area of and a population of 5,758,920, making it the most populous province in Mozambique (2017 census). Nampula is the capital of the province. History Under Port ...

. Police have used

tear gas Tear gas, also known as a lachrymatory agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the Mace (spray), early commercial self-defense spray, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the ey ...

on protesters in Maputo, and a 16-year-old was reported to have been shot by police in Chiúre, Cabo Delgado Province.

Results

The official final results were published by the Constitutional Court on 29 December 2023 (The number of municipalities increased from 53 in 2018 to 65 in 2023):

References

{{Election-stub Elections in Mozambique 2023 in Mozambique October 2023 in Mozambique Mozambican local elections, 2023