Southern Africa
Botswana
Republic of Botswana
- Capital
- Gaborone
- Independence
- 1966-09-30
Botswana, the former Bechuanaland Protectorate, has held multi-party elections at regular intervals since independence in 1966 and has never had a coup. The Botswana Democratic Party governed for 58 years, with the presidency passing from each president to his vice-president. In 2024 the party lost an election for the first time and handed power to the opposition Umbrella for Democratic Change. The president is elected by the National Assembly, so parliamentary elections decide who governs.
No overview written for this section yet.
No overview written for this section yet.
Political timeline 18
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BDP loses power after 58 years
Duma Boko, President
The UDC won an outright majority and the BDP fell to fourth place in seats, in an election held during a downturn in the diamond market and rising unemployment. Masisi conceded before the count was complete. Duma Boko was sworn in as president on 1 November 2024, the first change of governing party since independence.
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2019 general election
Mokgweetsi Masisi, President
Masisi won a full term despite Khama's campaign against him. The UDC alleged fraud, but the courts dismissed its petitions.
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Ian Khama steps down, Masisi succeeds
Mokgweetsi Masisi, President
Khama completed ten years in office and Vice-President Mokgweetsi Masisi took over. The two men soon fell out, and in 2019 Khama left the BDP to support the new Botswana Patriotic Front (BPF).
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2014 general election
Ian Khama, President
The BDP kept its majority but its share of the vote fell below 50% for the first time. The Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC), an opposition coalition led by Duma Boko, became the main opposition.
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2009 general election
Ian Khama, President
Khama won his first election as president. In 2010 a group of BDP members broke away to form the Botswana Movement for Democracy, the first split in the party's history.
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Mogae steps down, Ian Khama succeeds
Ian Khama, President
Mogae reached the ten-year limit and handed over to Vice-President Ian Khama.
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2004 general election
Festus Mogae, President
Mogae won a second term in an enlarged parliament. The BDP took just over half of the vote but more than three quarters of the seats.
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1999 general election
Festus Mogae, President
The BDP recovered ground after the BNF split and the Botswana Congress Party (BCP) broke away from it in 1998.
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Masire retires, Mogae succeeds
Festus Mogae, President
Masire retired after almost 18 years in office. Vice-President Festus Mogae succeeded him automatically and appointed Ian Khama, the army commander and son of Seretse Khama, as vice-president.
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Electoral and presidential reforms
Constitutional amendments limited the president to ten years in office and provided that the vice-president automatically succeeds a president who dies or resigns. A referendum in October 1997 approved an independent electoral commission, a voting age of 18 and voting by citizens abroad.
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1994 general election
Quett Masire, President
The BNF achieved the strongest opposition result up to that time, winning the urban seats. The BDP kept a clear majority.
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1989 general election
Quett Masire, President
The BDP won nearly all seats, although the opposition took about a third of the vote.
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1984 general election
Quett Masire, President
Masire won his first election as president. The BNF made gains in the towns, and a court later ordered a rerun in Gaborone South, which the BNF leader Kenneth Koma won.
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Death of Seretse Khama
Quett Masire, President
Seretse Khama died of cancer in Gaborone. Vice-President Quett Masire acted as president and was elected to the office by the National Assembly on 18 July.
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1979 general election
Seretse Khama, President
Khama won his last election with the BDP's largest share of seats.
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1974 general election
Seretse Khama, President
The BDP increased its majority on a low turnout.
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1969 general election
Seretse Khama, President
The BDP won the first election after independence. The Botswana National Front (BNF) entered parliament, and Vice-President Quett Masire lost his constituency to the former chief Bathoen Gaseitsiwe.
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Independence from the United Kingdom
Seretse Khama, President
The Bechuanaland Protectorate became the Republic of Botswana with Seretse Khama as president. His Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) had won 28 of 31 seats in the 1965 pre-independence election.
No overview written for this section yet.
No overview written for this section yet.
No overview written for this section yet.
No overview written for this section yet.
No overview written for this section yet.