The Electoral Support Network of Southern Africa (ESN-SA) and the Zimbabwe
Election Support Network (ZESN) jointly deployed a small delegation comprising
experienced observation practitioners to Namibia’s 2024 Presidential and National
Assembly elections. The Mission conducted extensive research and met with a wide
range of electoral stakeholders, including other international observation missions,
members of the legal fraternity, media experts, and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) representatives.
The primary objective of the Joint Observer Mission was to evaluate whether the
Namibian electoral process adhered to national laws and to determine if the
country’s electoral framework aligns with regional and international principles,
norms, standards, and best practices. This initiative underscores the two
organisation’s dedication to advancing democratic integrity and transparent
electoral processes throughout the Southern African Development Community
(SADC) region.
The Joint Mission observed the opening of polling stations in the Khomas region.
These were characterised by long, winding queues well before opening. Each voting
station had an average of 7 voting officials, with a notable predominance of young
female presiding officers and youthful polling officials. Procedures, including
verifying voters’ names on the roll, checking for ink on fingers, and stamping ballot
papers with the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN), were consistently followed,
with a notable exception in some polling stations where polling officials responded
differently to instances where tablets used to verify voters overheated.
