General elections are underway in Malawi, with over seven million registered voters electing their next president, members of parliament and ward councillors.
Incumbent President Lazarus Chakwera is among the seventeen presidential candidates that include former presidents Peter Mutharika and Joyce Banda.
Malawi is 118,484 square kilometres in size, with an estimated population of 22.2 million people, spread over three regions and a total of 28 districts.
Registered to vote in the general elections on Tuesday are a total of 7,203,390 voters.
Of that number, more than half—4,114,720—are female.
Voting started at 6AM and is expected to go on until 4PM, with a possibility of extension.
A total of 193 constituencies for elective parliamentary seats are being contested, along with numerous councillor seats in every constituency.
Here are just some of the 17 candidates running for president.
Lazarus Chakwera is the 70-year-old current and sixth president of Malawi since June 28, 2020. He runs on the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) ticket with running mate Vitumbiko Mumba, who, until today, was the Minister of Trade and Industry.
Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika – the 85-year-old former Cabinet minister who served as Malawi's president from May 31, 2014, until June 28, 2020. He runs on the same party ticket he did then, that of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
Mutharika initially defeated Dr Chakwera in the May 2019 general elections until his victory was invalidated by the courts, resulting in a fresh presidential vote in June 2020, which Dr Chakwera proceeded to win.
Professor Mutharika's running mate in today's election is Jane Ansah, a former judge and Malawi's first female Attorney General from 2006 to 2011. Dr Ansah (69) served as Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) Chairperson from 2016 to 2020.
Dalitso Kabambe, a 51-year-old economist, was Reserve Bank of Malawi Governor from April 2017 to July 2020. He was elected president of the United Transformation Movement (UTM) in November 2024 to replace the party's founder, Saulos Klaus Chilima, who died in a plane crash in June 2024 while serving as that country's vice president.
Dr Mathews Mtumbuka is Dr Kabambe's running mate.
Joyce Banda, a 75-year-old, served as the former president of Malawi from April 2012 to May 2014. She took office to complete the term of the country's third president, Bingu wa Mutharika, who died while serving in April 2012. Dr Banda was Malawi's vice-president from May 2009 to April 2012.
She contests today's vote on the People's Party ticket with her running mate, Khumbo Kachali, who served as Malawi's vice-president under her.
Michael Usi is the 56-year-old current Vice-President of Malawi, since June 20, 2024, when he was appointed by President Chakwera to replace the late Dr Chilima.
Dr Usi, a former Minister of Natural Resources and Climate Change, contests under his party, Odya Zake Alibe Mlandu, translated to "he who eats what is his has committed no crime." Grace Nazitwere is his running mate.
Atupele Muluzi – the 47-year-old son of the country's second president, Bakili Muluzi – runs on the ticket of the United Democratic Front (UDF).
UDF was founded in 1992 by Atupele's father. Rex Kalolo is the running mate to Atupele, a former Cabinet minister.
Apart from that, there are 11 other presidential candidates.