At Stake in this Election:  

• 57 of the 65 seats in the Botswanan National Assembly. 

Government Structure: 

• Chief of State: President Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe MASISI (since 1 April 2018) 

• Head of Government: President Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe MASISI (since 1 April 2018) 

• Assembly: unicameral Parliament with National Assembly of 65 members, prior to the 2024 election. 

Electoral System:  

• The President is indirectly elected by the National Assembly to a 5-year term, once renewable. 

• 57 of the 65 members in the National Assembly are directly elected by plurality vote in single-seat constituencies. 6 of the 65 are nominated by the President and approved by the rest of the National Assembly. The remaining 2 members are the President and Speaker of the National Assembly acting as ex-offico members. If the individual elected by the National Assembly to be Speaker of the National Assembly is already a current member, then they do not become an ex-officio member, potentially bringing the total to 64 members. All members are elected to 5-year terms. 

Last Election:  

In the last election in 2019, the Botswana Democratic Party won a majority with 38 of the 57 seats being voted on. Voter turnout was 84%.  

Key Deadlines:  

• Candidate registration deadline: 4 October 2024  

• Voter registration deadline: 31 May 2024 

Main Parties in this Election:  

• Party: Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) 

• • Leader: Mokgweetsi Eric Keabetswe MASISI 

• • Seats won in the last election: 38 seats out of 57 

• Party: Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) 

• • Coalition of Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) and Alliance for Progress (AP) 

• • Leader: Duma BOKO 

• • Seats won in the last election: 16 (15 UDC, 1 AP) seats out of 57 

• Party: Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF) 

• • Leader: Mephato REATILE 

• • Seats won in the last election: 3 seats out of 57 

• Party: Botswana Congress Party (BCP) 

• • Leader: Dumelang SALESHANDO 

• • Seats won in the last election: 0 seats out of 57 

Population and Registered Voters: 

• Population: 2,675,352 (2023 est.) 

• Registered Voters: 925,478 (2019) 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population:  1,353,690 (2023 est.) 

• CEDAW Status: Acceded 13 Aug 1996 

• Gender Quota: No 

• Female Candidates in this election: Yes 

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 7 out of 62 (11%) in the National Assembly 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.708, High, rank 114 (2022) 

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: 31.5 (2023) 

Disability Data: 

• CRPD Status: Acceded 12 Jul 2021 

• Projected population with a disability: 428,056 (2023 est.) 

IFES Resources: 

• Does IFES have a presence in Botswana: No 

• Election Access: Yes