At stake in this election:

• 193 seats in the National Assembly

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Joyce BANDA[1]
• Head of Government: President Joyce BANDA
• Assembly: Malawi has a unicameral National Assembly with 193 seats.

Description of electoral system:

• In the National Assembly, 193 members are elected by plurality vote in single-member constituencies to serve 5-year terms.

Election Note:

• The last National Assembly elections were held on May 19, 2009. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), led by then-President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA won a majority of seats in the National Assembly, winning 114 seats. Five other parties won seats in the election, in addition to 32 independent candidates. The 2014 National Assembly will take place alongside the Presidential election and local government elections. Overall, 16 parties, in addition to independent candidates, will contest the National Assembly elections.

Main parties in the electoral race:[2]

• People’s Party (PP)
  • Leader: Joyce BANDA
  • Seats won in last National Assembly elections: N/A[3]
• Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)
  • Leader: Peter MUTHARIKA
  • Seats won in last National Assembly elections: 114
• Malawi Congress Party (MCP)
  • Leader: Lazurus CHAKWERA
  • Seats won in last National Assembly elections: 26
• United Democratic Front (UDF)
  • Leader: Atupele MULUZI
  • Seats won in last National Assembly elections: 17
• National Salvation Front (NASAF)
  • Leader: James NYONDO
  • Seats won in last National Assembly elections: N/A
• People’s Progressive Movement (PPM)
  • Leader: Mark KATSONGA
  • Seats won in last National Assembly elections: 0
• United Independence Party (UIP)
  • Leader: Hellen SINGH
  • Seats won in last National Assembly elections: N/A
• Alliance for Democracy (AFORD)
  • Leader: Godfrey SHAWA
  • Seats won in last National Assembly elections: 1

Population:

• Population: 16,695,253 (2014)
• Registered Voters: 7,537,548 (December 2013)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 8,365,620 (2014)

·         Is Malawi a signatory to CEDAW: No

·         Has Malawi ratified CEDAW: Yes, accession (12 March 1987)

·         Gender Quota: No, but there are political parties with voluntary gender quotas

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 32 (following the 2014 elections)

·         Human Development Index Position: 173 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Medium (2014)

Disability Data:

·         Is Malawi a signatory to CRPD: Yes (27 September 2007)

·         Has Malawi ratified CRPD: Yes (27 August 2009)

·         Population with a disability: 2,504,287 (est.)