Malawi election results update: Electoral Commission call for calm after candidate claim victory

Malawi electoral commission don call for calm after both main presidential candidates for di election do press conference wia one claim victory for di election.

Malawi pipo dey wait to find out who go be dia next president as di polls don close for most parts of kontri. Vote counting don also start afta di elections wey hold for Tuesday, 16 September.

Thousands of pipo bin queue outside polling stations on Tuesday to vote for president, Members of Parliaments and local councillors. Dem hope say dia vote go bring about change for di kontri wey get plenty economic palava.

Some voters still dey vote for areas wia voting start late.

Observers say early results show say former President Peter Mutharika leg strong against incumbent president Lazarus Chakwera.

If no candidate win more dan half di votes, di top two contenders go do run-off.

Di election na two-horse race

Di election na two-horse race between Chakwera and di man wey e beat for 2020, 85-year-old Mutharika.

However, 15 oda candidates dey contest for di number one seat, wey include former president Peter Mutharika, di kontri only female head of state, Joyce Banda, former President Bakili Muluzi son, Atupele Muluzi plus di incumbent Vice President Michael Usi.

Di southern African kontri apart from di plenty economic woes, also dey crippled by nationwide power outages and fuel shortages.

As pipo line up to vote on Tuesday, frustrated motorists continue to form long, snaking queues for fuel outside petrol stations.

President Chakwera, wey promise to tackle dis scarcity, stand for line to vote wit local residents for im hometown, Malembo, wey dey about 56km (35 miles) north-east of capital city Lilongwe.

Plenty police officers and military guards bin dey ground to protect di 70-year-old and im wife, as voters huddle around, wit hope to just see di president even if na for few seconds.

One woman outside di Malembo Primary School polling station bin tell BBC say she dey so eager to cast her ballot, she bin camp dia overnight.

Anoda voter, Mercy Nedson Chimbewa, say: "We vote bicos of di freedom we get for here. For oda kontris, pipo no get di opportunity to exercise dia right to vote."

Few hours bifor di polls close, Malawi Electoral Commission chairperson Annabel Mtalimanja tok say 3.7 million pipo - half of those wey register to vote - na dem cast dia ballot.

For di most part, di exercise dey smooth for polling stations, wey pass more dan 15,000.

However, news agency Reuters report delays for some stations sake of problems wit biometric fingerprint readers.

Di electoral commission acknowledge "queueing challenges" for "one or two centres", but e say dem manage di situation.

Dem make provisions for voters wey no fit write - dem mark dia ballot paper wit inked fingerprint, while odas used pen to select dia chosen candidate.

Bifor dem open di polls, Ms Mtalimanja bin remind social media influencers say make dem no livestream or do content of how dem take vote, as govment don ban kontri from taking fotos of dia ballot papers.

Di counting of votes start immediately di polls close for 14:00 GMT.

Di Malawi Electoral Commission say dem dey work closely wit di Malawi Police Service and di Malawi Defence Force to ensure say all tallying centres across di kontri dey safe, secure, and dey operate without interruption

"We don begin collate results from polling stations across di kontri and we dey transmit di forms physically to constituency tally centres for all councils. Di electronic transmission go start for di Constituency tally centres", di electoral commission chairpesin tok.

Wen dem go announce di result

Di Malawi Electoral Commission get up until di end of 24 September to announce di presidential result for Tuesday poll and di end of 30 September for di parliamentary election.

"In accordance wit Section 98 of di Presidential, Parliamentary and Local Government Elections Act, di Commission go announce di results of di presidential election within eight days, di parliamentary election within fourteen (14) days, and di local govment election within twenty-one (21) days from di closure of polling," Justice Annabel Mtalimanja, di electoral chairperson tok.

She add say dem design di timelines to ensure say di Commission get adequate time to verify, audit, and authenticate all results bifor dem make am official.