The Christian Churches Monitoring Group (CCMG) applauds the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) for releasing the 2026 General Election Road Map which provides key electoral activities and their timelines. This release is timely as it provides an opportunity for all stakeholders to analyze the road map and provide feedback to the ECZ. The road map ultimately will help stakeholders plan adequately ahead of the 2026 elections. CCMG urges the ECZ to continue providing timely updates to stakeholders on the road map including timely release of related procedures, notably on accreditation, to ensure effective stakeholder participation in the electoral process for enhanced transparency. We further reiterate our call for simplified accreditation procedures to remove undue burden on citizen election observers in the roll-out of the electoral activities outlined in the roadmap. CCMG also calls on the ECZ to clarify if boundary delimitation will take place at any level of electoral boundaries, including the re-naming of polling stations with duplicate names and the decongestion of polling stations in areas that saw long queues during the 2021 elections.
CCMG is equally pleased with the launch of the Electoral Reform Process and the establishment of an Electoral Reform Technical Committee (ERTC) to lead the reform process. CCMG has advocated for electoral reforms to address key challenges in the administration of elections including at administrative level arising from the Constitution, the Electoral Commission of Zambia Act, Electoral Process Act and the Public Order Act among others since 2016. It is, therefore, our expectation that the ERTC will embody an inclusive and comprehensive process in reviewing legislation and administrative procedures to improve Zambia’s elections and the electoral process.
CCMG urges all stakeholders to take keen interest in the electoral process and the recently launched reform process and participate at every stage as may be required. CCMG strongly believes that electoral reforms are essential for improving fair, representative, and transparent voting systems, which will help to build public trust in the electoral process. CCMG warns against politicizing this process and calls on all stakeholders to apply themselves beyond partisan politics and secure reforms that promote integrity in the electoral process and the interests of all Zambians.
