Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi has conceded defeat as preliminary results showed his governing party lost its parliamentary majority after nearly six decades in power.
Masisi’s concession on Friday came before the final results were announced, with his Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) trailing in fourth place, according to tallies by the electoral commission.
“We got it wrong big time in the eyes of the people,” Masisi told a news conference in the capital, Gaborone.
“We were really convinced of our message. But every indication, by any measure, is that there’s no way that I can pretend that we’re going to form a government.”
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The president, who was seeking a second five-year term in Wednesday’s election, said he would “step aside”.
“I wish to congratulate the opposition on their victory and concede the election,” Masisi said.
The results are expected to be confirmed by the electoral commission later on Friday.
Under the country’s electoral system, the first party to take 31 of 61 seats in the legislature will be declared the winner, install its candidate as president and form a government.
The BDP has governed the diamond-rich Southern African nation for 58 years, being in power since 1966 and was expected to win.
The main opposition Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) held a strong lead in the partial results, making its leader, Duma Boko, the likely candidate for president.
Masisi said he had called Boko to inform him he was conceding defeat.
UDC had already secured 25 seats, according to the official partial count, and was aiming to reach 31 seats to become the outright winner and hand the presidency to human rights lawyer Boko.
Boko, 54, created the UDC in 2012 to unite opposition groups against the BDP.
“CHANGE IS HERE,” Boko wrote on Facebook as small street celebrations were under way in parts of Gaborone. It is the third time that he has run for president, previously contesting in 2014 and 2019.
