By Edwin Mauluka
Ink-smudged ballot papers briefly raised fears of vote rigging during Malawi’s 2025 General Elections, but officials confirmed the marks were manufacturing defects rather than evidence of fraud.
In Phalombe, District Commissioner Douglas Moffat assured voters that about 300 ballots flagged by party monitors were simply damaged by ink at the factory. He dismissed concerns that they had been pre-marked before voting began. Smeared ink can potentially mark a selection on the ballot.
A similar scare unfolded in Blantyre at Mpata Primary School in Machinjiri Township, where monitors raised alarm over damaged ballots before the issue was resolved.
Elsewhere, security forces dealt with cases of misconduct. Police in Lilongwe arrested party monitors at Kalonga Primary School in Nankhaka Constituency for allegedly instructing voters on how to cast their ballots. Presiding Officer Subila Winga said polling staff intervened and referred the matter to police.
In Mangochi, the Malawi Defense Force (MDF) detained a man identified as Ndaona White for allegedly attempting to disrupt vote counting at Kasolo Primary School in Chimwala. Lieutenant Colonel Richard Phiri said White and two others — reportedly in MDF uniforms and armed with panga knives — stormed the center. The accomplices escaped and remain at large. Their political ties are not yet known.
The campaign season leading up to the polls was marred by violence. In June, armed men attacked demonstrators demanding an independent audit of the voter roll as police looked on. The protests, organized by Citizens for Credible Elections, reflected ongoing fears that the election might not be free and fair.
On voting day, polls scheduled to close at 4 p.m. were extended in some areas to accommodate late openings, communication issues, and glitches with biometric voter machines. In several polling stations, monitors for parties and independent candidates failed to show up.
This year’s election has been one of the most competitive in Malawi’s history, featuring 17 presidential candidates, including the incumbent president, his vice president, and two former presidents. Voters also chose members of Parliament and local government councillors for five-year terms.
The vote comes amid economic hardship, with Malawians facing inflation, unemployment, shortages of fuel and foreign currency, and rising crime. Many voters remain cautios, recalling the annulled 2019 election in which Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was initially declared winner before the courts ordered a rerun. That 2020 rerun brought a victory for the alliance of Lazarus Chakwera and Saulos Chilima.
According to the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC), 7.2 million voters registered for this election, with turnout estimated at 60 percent by the time polls closed.
Unofficial results are circulating on various media platforms, but The Forum has chosen not to report them at this time.
