Zambian general election, 1983

General elections were held in Zambia on 27 October 1983. At the time, the country was a one-party state, with the United National Independence Party (UNIP) as the sole contestant in the elections. Its candidate, Kenneth Kaunda was automatically re-elected for a fifth term as President, and was confirmed in office with over 95% of the vote. UNIP also won all 125 seats in the National Assembly. Voter turnout was around 63% in the parliamentary election,^[1] but 65.5% in the presidential election.^[2]

Campaign

Prior to the elections, primary elections were held to elect candidates for the 125 constituencies. Only UNIP members could vote in the primaries, and the top three candidates would be able to stand for the National Assembly election.^[3] In total, 812 people stood for election to the National Assembly, with 46 rejected by the UNIP central committee.^[1]

Results

President

Kaunda was the sole candidate for president, and voters voted yes or no to his candidacy. Some sources reported the results to be 93% for and 7% against.^[4]

Choice	Votes	%
Yes	1,453,029	95.4
No	70,355	4.6
Invalid/blank votes	34,679	–
Total	1,558,063	100
Registered voters/turnout	2,377,610	65.5
Source: Nohlen et al.

National Assembly

Party	Votes	%	Seats	+/–
United National Independence Party		100	125	0
Presidential appointees	–	–	10	0
Appointed Speaker	–	–	1	0
Invalid/blank votes		–	–	–
Total	1,572,333	100	136	0
Registered voters/turnout	2,377,610	66.1	–	–
Source: Nohlen et al., African Elections Database

References

1. Zambia 1978 Inter-Parliamentary Union
2. Nohlen, D, Krennerich, M & Thibaut, B (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p954 ISBN 0-19-829645-2
3. Zambia: 1973 and 1978 one-party elections EISA
4. Elections in Zambia African Elections Database