General elections were held in

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 15 October 1994, alongside simultaneous

local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...

. The result was a victory for the

Botswana 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 ...

(BDP), Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich & Bernhard Thibaut (1999) ''Elections in Africa: A data handbook'', p113 which had won every election since 1965. However, the elections also saw a strong performance from the Botswana National Front (BNF), which tripled its number of MPs and won all four seats in the capital

Gaborone Gaborone ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Botswana with a population of 246,325 based on the 2022 census, about 10% of the total population of Botswana. Its agglomeration is home to 421,907 inhabitants at the 2011 census. Gaboron ...

Background

Following the 1991 census, constituency boundaries were redrawn and six new constituencies were created. Five of these were in urban areas, which was deemed to be a more realistic apportionment of constituencies; Gaborone gained three,

Francistown Francistown is the second largest city in Botswana, with a population of about 103,417 and 147,122 inhabitants for its agglomeration at the 2022 census. and often described as the "''Capital of the North''" or as the natives would have it “''T ...

one and

Lobatse Lobatse is a town in south-eastern Botswana, 70 kilometres south of the capital Gaborone, situated in a valley running north towards Gaborone and close to the border with South Africa. Lobatse has a population of 29,772 as of 2022. The town is an ...

became a new constituency.Botswana: The October 1994 General Election
EISA

Campaign

The elections were contested by a record nine parties,
IPU with a total of 108 candidates running. The BNF considered boycotting the elections after the government refused to reform the electoral system or reduce the voting age from 21, but eventually contested the elections due to the belief that the government was vulnerable. The BDP campaigned on its record of economic and political stability, whilst the BNF campaign centred on high rent and utility costs, as well as unemployment.

Results

The four indirectly elected members were elected on 26 October by members of the National Assembly, based on a list of eight candidates produced by President Ketumile Masire.

Aftermath

Following the elections, the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

convened on 17 October to elect the

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 ...

. Incumbent President Masire (BDP) was challenged by Kenneth Koma (BNF) and Knight Maripe (BPP). Masire was re-elected and inaugurated on 19 October. The new government was announced on 25 October.

References

{{Botswana elections Elections in Botswana

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Election and referendum articles with incomplete results