Zambians are voting in presidential, parliamentary and local elections that could shape policy across one of Africa’s most important copper industries.
President Hakainde Hichilema wants a second term after five years in office during which he restructured the country’s debt, attracted mining investment and reopened major copper assets. Opposition leader Brian Mundubile has challenged him over living costs, jobs and the distribution of Zambia’s mining wealth.
The Electoral Commission of Zambia opened polling stations at 6 a.m. on Thursday and will close them at 6 p.m. The final voter register carries 8.79 million voters nationwide.A presidential candidate needs more than 50 percent of valid votes to win outright, or Zambia holds a runoff. Election officials expect results by Monday.
The vote comes as Zambia emerges from a prolonged debt crisis that followed its 2020 sovereign default. Hichilema took office in 2021 and pursued debt restructuring alongside policies aimed at restoring investor confidence.
Those policies have pulled money back into mining. Zambia’s Ministry of Mines says the country attracted more than $10 billion in mining investment over the past four years. The government wants copper production to reach 3 million metric tonnes annually by 2031.
Copper gives this election significance well beyond Zambia’s borders.
The country ranks as Africa’s second-largest copper producer after the Democratic Republic of Congo. Copper sits at the centre of global investment in electricity grids, electric vehicles, renewable energy and data infrastructure.Mining companies will watch the next government’s approach to taxes, licences, power supply and investment incentives closely.
Hichilema has courted private capital and reversed several policies that damaged relations with major miners before he took office. Mining companies now want Zambia to hold its tax rules steady and expand electricity supply as they develop new projects.
That creates a difficult political balance. The government needs large investments to raise copper output, but voters also want mining growth to translate into jobs, affordable electricity and better living standards.
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Many households still face high food costs, unemployment and unreliable power despite improvements in some economic indicators. That gap between macroeconomic recovery and household conditions has become a defining election issue.
Mundubile argues that ordinary Zambians haven’t received enough benefit from the country’s copper sector and wider economic recovery. Hichilema defends his administration’s investment-led approach and debt restructuring record.
China already holds extensive commercial interests in Zambia’s mining sector and remains a major investor in the country’s copper and cobalt industries.
The United States has also raised its interest in Zambia and other mineral-rich African economies, as Washington seeks more diversified supplies of critical minerals.
That doesn’t turn Zambia’s election into a contest between Washington and Beijing, though. Zambian voters will decide the government, and foreign governments and companies will respond to whichever mining and investment policies follow.
Hichilema has previously argued that African mineral producers should avoid picking sides between major powers and instead pursue partnerships that serve their own economic interests.
What This Means for Zambia’s Economy
For Zambia, the challenge goes beyond extracting more copper.
The next government will face pressure to convert mining investment into jobs, local supplier contracts, power infrastructure and processing capacity, all while keeping Zambia attractive to international capital.
Mining projects take years to plan and billions of dollars to build. Policy changes after this election could therefore shape decisions that stretch far beyond the next political term.
For voters, the immediate test stays basic: can Zambia’s economic recovery and copper wealth actually raise household incomes, boost employment and ease the cost of living?
