This archive report was first published on 30 August 2021.
Published on August 30, 2021
When Hakainde Hichilema (HH) beat incumbent Edgar Lungu to become Zambia's seventh president, it sparked a conversation about the country's electoral culture and its people's ability to transfer power peacefully.
Unlike Tanzania, where the incumbent president has never been ousted, Zambia has a history of peaceful transfers of power, dating back to 1991 when Kenneth Kaunda was felled by Frederick Chiluba.
Since then, Zambia has had seven changes at the top, with only one occasioned by the death in office of Levy Mwanawasa. The Zambian electorate has cast out a president and installed another three times, a remarkable feat in a continent where old and tired political systems are the norm.
From the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) of Chiluba to the new United Party for National Development (UPND) of HH, Zambians have eaten through four different political formations, all the time transferring power peacefully.
This versatility has daunted Tanzanian opposition supporters, who yearn for a similar situation at home but see no indication it will arrive any time soon.
One explanation for Zambia's vibrant electoral culture is its dynamic demographic character, with a young and highly urbanised population that is mobile physically, psychologically, and politically.
Uprooted from their rural tethering, Zambians have been disabused of their erstwhile
