MEC Nullifies Mtandire–Mtsiliza Parliamentary Election Between Zulu and Gangata Over Void Vote Irregularities
Published on September 30, 2025 at 9:15 AM by Edgar Naitha
The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) has nullified the parliamentary election results for Lilongwe City’s Mtandire–Mtsiliza Constituency following irregularities in the handling of void votes.
The decision comes after Malawi Congress Party (MCP) candidate George Zulu filed two complaints regarding discrepancies in void vote figures.
Unofficial results had shown Zulu trailing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate Alfred Gangata by just five votes, Zulu had 12,284 against Gangata’s 12,289.
In his petition, Zulu claimed that while 445 void votes were recorded at the constituency level, only 345 were submitted to the District Tally Centre.
He requested a recount, citing the narrow margin and the alleged 100 missing void votes.
In a letter dated 27 September 2025 addressed to lawyer Pempho Likongwe, MEC Chairperson Justice Annabel Mtalimanja confirmed the Commission’s decision to nullify the results.
“The Council Returning Officer did not have the authority to prepare any record relating to a parliamentary election, examine void votes, or open tamper evident envelopes containing void votes,” said Justice Mtalimanja.
She further noted that “the handling of polling materials at the Council, especially the void votes, departed from the legally set procedure.”
As a result, MEC stated it was unable to determine the results with certainty and announced that a by-election will be held.
