Lead image for Zambia's Hichilema re-elected amid chaotic opposition surge.
Zambia's President Hakainde Hichilema was re-elected for a second term, but the opposition leader put in an unexpectedly strong showing, capitalising on public frustration with lingering hardships despite an economic turnaround.
Results released by the election commission in the early hours of Tuesday morning showed that Hichilema received roughly 60 percent of valid votes, compared with 38 percent for his main challenger Brian Mundubile.
Zambian opposition presidential candidate Brian Mundubile, of the Tonse Alliance, appears on a ballot at a polling station during the country's general elections, in Lusaka, Zambia, August 13, 2026.
It was Hichilema's seventh run for the presidency and he was widely expected to win due to the advantages of incumbency, while it was Mundubile's first bid to become head of state.
Hichilema, 64, campaigned on his economic record since taking charge during a pandemic-era debt crisis in 2021, whereas Mundubile's pitch to voters included that improving macroeconomic indicators had made little difference to their daily lives.
Copper-rich Zambia has been a focus of competition between China and the United States for its critical minerals.