Over 600 trained election monitors and polling agents have been deployed to constituencies across Zambia by the ZIKO LATHU Consortium, a coalition of civil society organisations, as the country heads into Thursday’s general election.

Monitors Positioned As Independent Observers

ActionAid Country Director Faides Tembatemba said the monitors have been equipped to serve as impartial, independent and well informed stakeholders at polling stations, constituencies and results centres. She was speaking in Lusaka during the launch of the ZIKO LATHU Consortium Election Situation Room and Youth Election Command Centre, which will coordinate the monitoring effort and track incidents as they are reported from the field.

The Situation Room adds a dedicated civil society layer to the machinery already assembled for election day, alongside the National Election Results Centre the Electoral Commission of Zambia launched at Mulungushi and the broadcast safeguards the Independent Broadcasting Authority has put in place for results reporting.

National Coverage, With Focus On Under Monitored Areas

Tembatemba said the consortium will expand its efforts to cover all constituencies, keeping its monitoring approach national in scope while giving particular attention to areas that have had limited election monitoring infrastructure in the past. That includes rural and peri urban constituencies where independent observation has traditionally been thinner than in Lusaka and the Copperbelt.

Violence Against Women Flagged As A Priority

Non-Governmental Organisations Coordinating Council Executive Director Annie Anamela said violence against women during elections should be addressed promptly, adding her voice to a campaign period in which the Electoral Commission has already taken action against threats of political violence and President Hakainde Hichilema has warned of full consequences for offenders.

Call For A Large, Informed Turnout

Media Institute of Southern Africa National Director Austin Kayanda called on Zambians to make informed decisions by turning up in large numbers to vote for candidates of their choice, framing high, informed turnout as part of what keeps an election credible in the eyes of both citizens and outside observers.

Why Stakeholder Collaboration Matters

Panos Institute Southern Africa Executive Director Vusumuzi Sifile said the launch of the initiative is important because it demonstrates the need for stakeholder collaboration in ensuring free and fair elections. That collaboration mirrors the broader observation effort around Thursday’s vote, which has also drawn regional observers under the ICGLR and follows the arrival of ballot papers in constituencies such as Livingstone in the final stretch before polling.

What It Means

A credible, well observed election matters beyond politics. Independent monitoring of the kind ZIKO LATHU is deploying feeds directly into how quickly and how confidently results are accepted, which in turn shapes how soon government, business and development partners can settle into a period of policy certainty. For a country heading to the polls with several close, closely watched races, an accredited, nationally spread civil society presence at polling stations is one of the practical mechanisms that underpins that confidence.

By Zambian Economist Analyst

Related: Hichilema Warns of Arrests Over Alleged Election Disruption Plot

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By The Zambian Economist Analyst

The Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) has cautioned radio and television stations to put accuracy ahead of speed when reporting Zambia’s election results.

IBA Director General Webster Malido said broadcasters may update audiences on voting, counting and tallying, but should not announce results that are speculative, projected or unverified. He spoke during a press briefing in Lusaka.

What the IBA told broadcasters

Mr Malido said election results should be broadcast only after they have been officially announced through the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ). The instruction forms part of the regulator’s push for responsible election coverage before Zambia’s 13 August 2026 general election.

• Report voting, counting and tallying updates accurately and with clear attribution.
• Do not present projections, rumours or partial figures as official results.
• Wait for results announced through the ECZ’s authorised process.
• Give political parties and candidates fair and equitable coverage.
• Maintain impartiality in interviews and news reports.

Why official results matter

The ECZ’s published results process assigns different responsibilities at polling stations, constituency totalling centres and the National Results Centre, which the ECZ formally launched on 12 August,. Presiding officers announce polling-station results, returning officers handle constituency totals and declarations for parliamentary and local government races, and the ECZ chairperson declares the presidential result.

That sequence makes the source and status of each figure important. A number from one polling stream, station or unofficial tally is not the same as a declared national outcome. The ECZ has previously warned that unofficial figures shared through social media should not be treated as official results.

The IBA’s 2026 Election Coverage Guidelines require election information to be accurate, balanced, fair and equitable. They also call for verified reporting and reasonable access to airtime for parties and candidates.

Fair coverage remains part of the test

Mr Malido also urged broadcasters to provide fair and equitable coverage to all political parties and candidates. He said impartiality should apply to interviews as well as day-to-day news reporting.

For station managers and editors, the warning means election-night procedures should identify who is authorised to verify a result, how figures are labelled on air and when corrections are issued. Speed without verification can expose a broadcaster to regulatory action and damage audience trust.

What this means for businesses, investors and voters

Broadcasters and advertisers

Media houses need clear approval chains for live updates, on-screen graphics and social posts. Advertisers also have a reputational interest in ensuring their brands do not appear beside false or inflammatory election claims.

Businesses and investors

Companies and investors use credible election coverage to assess operational continuity and political risk. Unverified results can distort that assessment before the lawful process is complete. Readers tracking the wider economic stakes can consult our pillar guide, The Economics of Zambia’s 2026 Election.

The public

Voters should check whether a result has been attributed to the ECZ and whether it refers to a polling station, constituency or national tally. Screenshots and forwarded messages without a verifiable source should be treated with caution.

Key takeaways

• Broadcasters may report on the progress of voting, counting and tallying.
• Speculative, projected and unverified results should not be announced.
• Official ECZ announcements remain the benchmark for verified results.
• Parties and candidates should receive fair and equitable coverage.

Related reading

• ECZ briefs parties, candidates and observers ahead of the 2026 election
• What every Zambian voter should know before 13 August 2026
• Zambia faces a temporary political risk premium

For timely election and economic updates, subscribe to The Ledger and view upcoming events.

Sources: Independent Broadcasting Authority; Electoral Commission of Zambia. Photo credit: IBA.

© 2026 The Zambian Economist.

Related: ECZ Revokes Binwell Mpundu’s Accreditation to National Results Centre, which the ECZ formally launched on 12 August, Over Threat Video.

Independent monitoring is being reinforced from another direction too, with civil society deploying over 600 election monitors nationwide ahead of Thursday’s vote.

Related: Mundubile Says National Reconciliation Will Be NRPUP’s First 100-Day Priority

WARNING! All rights reserved. This material and all other digital content on this website may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed, in whole or in part, without the prior express permission of The Zambian Economist. Where permission is granted, the content must be clearly credited to “The Zambian Economist,” with “www.zambianeconomist.com” prominently displayed.

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Mwanza made the argument amid public debate over the Electoral Commission of Zambia’s clarification that a tick, dash or another single mark may be accepted when it clearly identifies the voter’s preferred candidate.

He said the debate should be guided by the Electoral Process Act No. 35 of 2016 and the Electoral Process (General) Regulations, 2016, rather than treated as a wholly new voting procedure.

What the Electoral Process Act says

Section 60(6)(b) of the Electoral Process Act requires a voter to mark the ballot paper in a way that indicates the candidate the voter wishes to support. The provision does not state that an X is the only possible mark.

Section 68(2)(d) requires a presiding officer to reject a ballot when it is marked in a way that makes it not reasonably possible to determine the voter’s choice. Read together, those provisions place emphasis on whether the voter’s intention can be established.

What the 2016 regulations add

Regulation 46(2) of the Electoral Process (General) Regulations, 2016 addresses a ballot marked otherwise than by a cross. It says such a ballot is not invalid merely for that reason if the voter’s intention clearly appears and the way it is marked does not identify the voter.

The wording broadly supports Mwanza’s central point that a tick or another clear mark is not automatically illegal. Acceptance still depends on the ballot clearly indicating one choice and not carrying an identifying feature.

Why an X remains the safest instruction

The distinction is important. The law governs how ballots are assessed, while ECZ’s official voting instructions tell voters how to mark them correctly. A voter should therefore follow the instructions printed on the ballot paper and use an X unless ECZ directs otherwise.

Using the prescribed mark reduces uncertainty and the risk of a ballot being disputed during counting. Voters should not mark more than one candidate, add a name, signature or identifying symbol, or make a mark that leaves their choice unclear.

Mwanza rejects claims of a new procedure

Mwanza said the relevant Act and regulations have been in force since 2016 and rejected suggestions that ECZ would be breaking the law by recognising a clear mark other than an X.

He also referred to what he described as the ECZ 2026 Election Trainer’s Manual, saying it recognises a ballot on which the mark is not a cross but the voter’s choice remains clear. The cited manual passage was not independently available for verification at the time of publication.

What voters should remember

• Follow the official ECZ instructions provided at the polling station.
• Use an X in the space provided unless ECZ gives a different instruction.
• Make only one clear choice and avoid any mark that could identify you.

Related coverage

• The Economics of Zambia’s 2026 Election
• 7,496 Poll Staff Undergo Training in Lusaka
• EU Election Observers Deploy Ahead of Zambia’s 2026 Polls

Sources: Statement attributed to DPP president Antonio Mwanza; Electoral Process Act No. 35 of 2016; Electoral Process (General) Regulations, 2016. Featured image: File photo.

The trainees were selected from more than 15,000 people who applied to work as poll staff in the district, according to District Publicity Coordinator Namakau Pumulo.

Ms Pumulo said the exercise is being conducted at ten schools across Lusaka and is expected to conclude within three days.

The trained personnel will then be deployed to their respective polling centres between Tuesday and Wednesday, she said.

Preparing staff for polling-day duties

The training is intended to equip poll staff with knowledge of the electoral process and the procedures they will be expected to follow while carrying out their duties.

According to Ms Pumulo, the programme also covers delimitation and the mixed-member proportional representation system.

The scale of the exercise reflects the staffing requirements involved in administering elections in Lusaka, Zambia’s most populous district. From the more than 15,000 applications received, just under half of the applicants were shortlisted for training.

Poll staff are central to the administration of voting at polling-station level. Their preparation is therefore an important operational step ahead of the general election, particularly in ensuring that election procedures are applied consistently across polling centres.

The three-day programme is expected to be followed immediately by deployment, giving the selected personnel a short period in which to move from classroom instruction to their assigned election duties.

Related: What Investors Are Watching as Zambia Heads to the Polls

Also read: Mwanza Says Clear Ballot Marks Beyond an X Can Be Valid