Sigh of relief: The vote that rescued Malawians

On 16 September 2025, Malawians went to the polls to elect a President, Members of Parliament and Councillors. The incumbent, Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika, standing on the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) ticket, polled 3,035,249 votes (56.76%), defeating his rival, Malawi Congress Party (MCP) leader Lazarus Chakwera, who garnered 1,765,170 votes (33.01%).

The election has been described as a "sigh of relief" for many Malawians, coming at the end of a five-year term widely characterised as a period of economic hardship. Analysts say voters went to the ballot box not merely to choose a leader, but to rescue themselves from that hardship.

1. Why it was called a protest vote

Analysts have labelled the result a protest vote. For three consecutive years, inflation ran above 20%, while chronic forex shortages left the country grappling with shortages of fuel, fertiliser and medicine. One lecturer in Blantyre summed up the mood: "When Peter Mutharika was governing in the first term, things did not go so well. For him to come back with such an emphatic win… it shows you how badly Chakwera has done."

2. The maize crisis: ufa, the real ballot paper

In Malawi, maize flour — ufa — functions as something of a second ballot paper, and prices in the run-up to the election were punishing.

In July, the national average price stood at K791 per kg (K39,550 per 50kg bag) — up 8% from K731 at the end of June, though still 32% cheaper than the same period the previous year, when prices hit K1,169. By August, prices surged again, rising 20% to K960 per kg from K803 at the end of July.

The Southern Region was hit hardest, with prices reaching K1,037 per kg, compared to K943 in the Centre and K751 in the North. A 50kg bag rose from K45,000 in July to K55,000 in August, with some markets charging as much as K70,000.

Government had set the farmgate price at K900 per kg, but farmers were reportedly selling for as low as K650 per kg (K32,500 per bag), as ADMARC had yet to begin buying.

3. The situation on the ground now

In the days since the vote, relief has begun to take hold. In Lilongwe, Blantyre, Mzuzu and district markets across the country, maize is once again cheaper, more available and more affordable.

ADMARC and NFRA depots have reopened, traders are releasing stocks they had previously been hoarding, and cross-border imports are flowing more freely. Families can now access ufa without the long queues that had become routine.

Conclusion

Under the previous administration, Malawians were squeezed from both directions — low prices for farmers, high prices for buyers. That dynamic is a major reason many viewed the 16 September vote as an opportunity to reset the cost of living, and why the outcome has been felt by many as a genuine rescue.

As Mutharika marks 12 months in office, Malawians have also welcomed the disappearance of the fuel queues that once accompanied every trip to the pump.