Luanda - Some 14.3 million Angolan voters are expected to cast ballots to elect the country’s president and members of the National Assembly Wednesday.
The August 24 general election, with a total of eight candidates vying for the presidency, will be the fifth of its kind since democratic elections were first introduced in 1992 in the southern African country. The eight candidates, who are running on the tickets of seven political parties and a coalition this year, are contesting what's expected to be the most competitive election since 1992. The eight participating parties will battle for the 220 seats in the National Assembly.
Out of the 220 seats, 130 are elected from the national lists of the parties, and the remaining 90 parliamentarians are elected based on provincial lists, with each of the 18 provinces in the country electing five deputies.
The president is not directly elected. In accordance with the Angolan constitution, the top candidate of a political party that wins the most votes is elected as president.
The president is elected for the same term as the members of the National Assembly and may serve a maximum of two terms. Each participating party nominates a presidential candidate at top of its list, who must be clearly identified on the ballot paper.
Incumbent President Joao Lourenco of the ruling People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), who is seeking a second term in office, will mainly face a challenge from Adalberto Costa Junior, leader of the country's largest opposition, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA). The MPLA had won all the previous elections held in 1992, 2008, 2012 and 2017, respectively.
The other six parties contesting the election are the National Front for the Liberation of Angola, the Nationalist Party for Justice in Angola, the Humanist Party of Angola, the Social Renewal Party, the National Patriotic Alliance and the Broad Convergence for the Salvation of Angola-Electoral Coalition.
The election this year will also include the participation of overseas voters, with some 22 560 citizens expected to vote from abroad.