Namibia’s Regional and Local Authority Elections 2020: Democracy beyond SWAPO

Abstract

The Regional and Local Authority Elections on 25 November 2020 have changed Namibia’s political landscape. Voters exercised their right to make political choices. The trend, first seen in the National Assembly and Presidential Elections of November 2019, signalled a seismic shift in voting behaviour and patterns. Namibians are entering a new era, and it is not yet sure how this will develop in the years to come. For the South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO), a liberation movement which has been in power since Independence in 1990, this has been a rude awakening. This article offers a summary of the latest election results which seem to indicate the beginning of a new chapter in the country’s democratic political culture.