The 54-year-old of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) will replace President Mokgweetsi Masisi, who on Friday conceded defeat after his Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) lost by a landslide for the first time in 58 years.
“From tomorrow, … I will start the process of handover,” Masisi said in an audio clip of a phone call with Boko that the outgoing leader posted on social media, signalling a smooth transition of power.
“You can count on me to always be there to provide whatever guidance you might want. … We will retreat to being a loyal opposition.”
Chief Justice Terence Rannowane officially declared Boko the victor. “I have the honour and privilege to declare him as elected president of Botswana. I congratulate you profoundly for the confidence that the people have shown in you,” he said on Friday.
Under the country’s electoral system, the first party to take 31 of 61 seats in the legislature is declared the winner, can then install its candidate as president and form a government.
The UDC passed the threshold, according to early results released on state television, which said the party had won 32 seats based on results from 55 of the 61 constituencies up for grabs. This would make its leader Boko the president-elect
“We got it wrong big time in the eyes of the people,” Masisi, who was seeking a second five-year term in Wednesday’s elections, said at a news conference in the capital, Gaborone.
“We were really convinced of our message. But every indication, by any measure, is that there’s no way that I can pretend that we’re going to form a government.”
The BDP has governed the diamond-rich Southern African nation since 1966 and was expected to win.
Boko, a lawyer and Harvard Law School graduate, didn’t immediately comment but posted on his official page on X: “Botswana First” with a picture of a UDC campaign poster with the words “Change is Here.”
It was the third time he ran for president after contesting in 2014 and 2019. He founded the UDC in 2012 to unite opposition groups against the BDP.
The opposition Botswana Congress Party had won seven seats, and the Botswana Patriotic Front had five seats with the BDP at just four, the partial tally showed.
Masisi, a 63-year-old former high school teacher and UNICEF worker, had been widely expected to keep his parliamentary majority and serve a second and final term.
Botswana, often held up as one of Africa’s greatest success stories, ranks among the wealthiest and most stable democracies on the continent. But a global downturn in demand for mined diamonds, which account for more than 80 percent of Southern African exports, has taken a toll on the economy.
Economic growth is expected to slow to 1 percent in 2024, according to the International Monetary Fund, down from 2.3 percent last year and 5.5 percent in 2022. Unemployment has risen to 27 percent with an even greater share of young people out of work.
Before the vote, the BDP had acknowledged the need to diversify the economy, pledging to develop new drivers of growth, such as agriculture and tourism.
“I am proud of our democratic processes. Although I wanted a second term, I will respectfully step aside and participate in a smooth transition process,” Masisi said.
More than one million people were registered to vote out of a population of 2.6 million.
The BDP did not “have anything new to offer”, analyst Ringisai Chikohomero of the Pretoria-based Institute for Security Studies told the Reuters news agency. “It was very clear that the president was really relying on incumbency.”
But the UDC put forward ambitious policy proposals, he said, by pledging to more than double the minimum wage, improve social services and create a more independent judiciary.
Diamond-rich Botswana went to the polls to vote in a general election in which President Mokgweetsi Masisi is seeking a second term and his ruling party hopes to extend its nearly six decades in power.
Masisi, 63, competed against three challengers on Wednesday for another five-year term. His Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) – which has governed the country of 2.3 million people for 58 years, since independence from British rule in 1966 – remains the favourite despite its decreasing popularity.
The BDP faces a divided opposition with its biggest challenge coming from the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), a coalition led by lawyer Duma Boko.
Also running for president are Dumelang Saleshando of the Botswana Congress Party and Mephato Reatile from the Botswana Patriotic Front.
The BDP – among Africa’s longest ruling parties – retains a majority in parliament, having won 38 of 57 contested seats in 2019.
Botswana is considered to be one of the most stable countries in Africa, but it is facing economic challenges because of the global downturn in the demand for diamonds, which it relies on. It is the second biggest producer of diamonds after Russia.
The country has struggled to diversify its economy. Unemployment has risen to 27 percent this year and is significantly higher for young people.
The BDP says it has listened to the concerns of voters and will pursue new revenue streams such as processing mineral resources and developing the agriculture and tourism sectors.
One of its campaign slogans has been “Changing Together, Building Prosperity”.
Polls opened at 6:30am (04:30 GMT) for more than one million people registered to vote. Voting extended into the night at some polling stations where people were still queueing after the scheduled closing time of 7:00pm (17:00 GMT) but others closed on time and prepared for counting.
The election will determine the makeup of parliament, and lawmakers will later elect the president.
“We are concerned about issues of employment and wage structures,” Karabo Manguba, a 29-year-old sales executive at a radio station told The Associated Press news agency. “Voting is a patriotic effort, … and our voices need to be heard.
Another voter, 38-year-old Lone Kobe, told the AFP news agency: “It is my time to voice my opinion. I can’t wait. … I would like to experience a new Botswana. We are seeing a percentage of the population enjoying the benefits.”
Masisi came to power in 2018 through a planned transition after his predecessor Ian Khama served the maximum 10 years in office. He kept the job after a 2019 election won by the BDP.
He managed to negotiate a new contract with diamond giant, the De Beers Group, to give Botswana a greater share of its rough diamonds.
Diamonds account for more than 80 percent of Botswana’s exports and a quarter of the gross domestic product (GDP), according to the World Bank.
“Our diamonds have not been selling since April so, yes, our revenues are down, but the economic fundamentals still remain intact,” he said at a presidential debate last week.
Sales of rough diamonds at Debswana, the company the government jointly owns with De Beers, were down nearly 50 percent in the first half of 2024, according to the authorities.
Masisi also lifted a ban on elephant hunting, which he lauded as benefitting rural communities, and instated an import ban on some produce items to help farmers.
The opposition says the BDP has been in power for too long and accuse it of economic mismanagement and corruption, which it denies.
“It is not acceptable that a country such as ours, which is the fifth richest per capita in Africa, still has so many people living in poverty,” the UDC’s Boko said at the debate.
The UDC has pledged to more than double the minimum wage from 1,500 pula ($112) per month to 4,000 pula ($300) if it wins.
