She led the struggle for statehood against apartheid in South Africa. In the run-up to last Wednesday’s general election, there was speculation that they would suffer the fate of other liberation parties in the region.
South Africa’s African National Congress lost its full parliamentary majority in May, while the Botswana Democratic Party was ousted from power after nearly six decades following elections in October.
Party stalwart Nandi-Ndaitwa, who is now the vice president, is a trusted leader who has served in high government positions for a quarter of a century.
Tanzania’s Samia Suluhu Hassan is currently the only female president in Africa, so Nandi-Ndaitwa will join an exclusive club if she wins.
To avoid a runoff, a candidate must receive more than 50% of the vote to be declared the winner.
The dentist-educated Itula of the Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) is seen as more charismatic than Nandi-Ndaitwa and managed to reduce Swap’s popularity in the last presidential election in 2019, reducing the vote share to 56% from 87% five years earlier.
The IPC said it would “seek justice through the courts” and urged people who felt they were unable to vote because of mismanagement by the electoral commission to contact the police to make a statement.
