General elections were held in the

Bechuanaland Protectorate The Bechuanaland Protectorate () was a protectorate established on 31 March 1885, by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (later the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) in Southern Africa. It became the Republi ...

on 1 March 1965, the country's first election under

universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political stan ...

.Botswana: The 1965 Pre-Independence General Election
EISA The result was a landslide victory for the

Bechuanaland Democratic Party The Botswana Democratic Party (abbr. BDP) is the governing party in Botswana. Its chairman is the Vice-President of Botswana, Slumber Tsogwane, and its symbol is a lift jack. The party has ruled Botswana continuously since gaining independence ...

, with

Seretse Khama Sir Seretse Goitsebeng Maphiri Khama, GCB, KBE (1 July 1921 – 13 July 1980) was a Motswana politician who served as the first President of Botswana, a post he held from 1966 to his death in 1980. Born into an influential royal fa ...

becoming

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

. Following the elections, the country became independent as

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalaha ...

on 30 September 1966, at which point Khama became

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Campaign

The elections were contested by three main parties;Gossett, CW, and Lotshwao, K., 2009, Report on the 1965 General Election and the 1966 Local Government Election, ''Botswana Notes & Records'', Vol. 41, pp.47-63 the Bechuanaland Democratic Party led by Khama, the

Bechuanaland People's Party The Botswana People's Party (BPP), originally the Bechuanaland People's Party, is a political party in Botswana formed in December 1960 during the colonial era. As a result of disappointment with the Legislative Council, under the leadership of ...

led by Philip Matante and the Bechuanaland Independence Party led by Motsamai Mpho. There was also a single independent candidate, G.E.N. Mannathoko, who ran in Tati West.Botswana Election Results
Election Passport In the Lobatsi and

Barolong Barolong is a tribe of Tswana people from Botswana and South Africa. Their King, Tau was the descendant of King Morolong who is the founder of Barolong tribe. He reigned around 1240 and adopted ''Tholo'' (the Kudu) as the Barolong totem. King Tau w ...

constituency, there were two candidates from the Bechuanaland People's Party, one of which represented the Motsete branch. Despite acceptance that the BDP was likely to win easily, there was widespread interest in the elections. The BDP was seen as a moderate party with responsible leaders and realistic policies; in contrast the leaders of the other parties were perceived to be quarrelsome and overly ethnocentric. Three BDP candidates were elected unopposed in

Ghanzi Ghanzi is a town in the middle of the Kalahari Desert the western part of the Republic of Botswana in southern Africa. The region is the country's pride in contributing a large portion towards the beef industry. In fact, Ghanzi farmers provides ...

, Kgalagadi and

Kweneng Kweneng is a village in Kweneng District of Botswana. The village is located around 75 km North-northwest of Mochudi Mochudi is one of the larger villages in Botswana with a population of 44,815 people in 2011. It is situated in the ...

West.

Results

References

{{Botswana elections Elections in Botswana

1965 in Bechuanaland Protectorate Election and referendum articles with incomplete results 1965 elections in the British Empire