Lusaka (AFP) - Zambia suspended vote counting nationwide on Friday following reports of violence in some districts, the electoral commission said.

The copper-rich southern African nation went to the polls on Thursday in an election focused on economic hardship.

President Hakainde Hichilema, who has been in power since 2021, faced off against his main challenger among the 14 contenders – Brian Mundubile, a 55-year-old former minister in the previous Patriotic Front (PF) government.

“The violence is targeted at poll staff, and in some instances has resulted in the theft of marked ballot papers in ballot boxes,” chief electoral officer Brown Kasaro said. The commission would review the suspension within 24 hours, he added.

Mundubile claimed a first-round victory on Friday.

“We have won this election both at presidential level and majority seats in parliament,” said Mundubile.

“We therefore view the continued delay in the transparent announcement and verification of presidential results with grave concern,” he added.

Hichilema said his team was receiving “encouraging results”.

Posting on social media, he urged citizens to “remain peaceful, patient and patriotic as we await the official outcome from those entrusted with managing the vote”.

Official presidential results were expected on Monday.

- Concerns over rights -

Hichilema, a 64-year-old tycoon won the presidency on his sixth attempt and was betting on job creation and an ambitious infrastructure drive to secure a final five-year term.

Backed by an alliance of opposition parties, Mundubile was running under the newly formed NRPUP party which draws much of its political base from the former ruling party.

He entered the race in May, injecting uncertainty into a contest that had long appeared to be Hichilema’s to lose.

Some 8.7 million people were registered to vote. They were also electing 226 seats in parliament.

Counting in the parliamentary vote was also suspended.

Zambia has a long record of transferring power through the ballot box, with every change of president since the return to multiparty politics in 1991 achieved through elections.

The country has come under scrutiny over concerns that Hichilema’s government has narrowed the space for dissent even as it promises stronger economic recovery.

On the eve of the election, Zambia’s Human Rights Commission said it was “actively monitoring arrests and detentions involving political candidates, supporters, journalists and other actors”.

- Arrests -

Earlier, the interior ministry said security agencies had arrested several suspects accused of plotting to interfere with the electoral system.

The ministry did not say how many people were arrested but said they included three former senior government officials accused of “providing technical services aimed at disrupting the electoral system”.

A 56-year-old Kenyan national was also taken into custody, it said.

Three other people, including a former provincial minister, were found in possession of more than 7.3 million kwacha ($388,000) and summoned to assist with the investigation.

Despite also having significant potential in cobalt, nickel and manganese, the country continues to struggle with persistent poverty, unemployment and rising food prices.

More than 70 percent of its population of 22 million lives on less than three US dollars a day, according to the World Bank.

The previous government of late former president Edgar Lungu left Zambia in sovereign default after years of heavy borrowing.

Hichilema’s administration has since secured a landmark debt restructuring deal, restored an International Monetary Fund programme and returned the economy to a growth path, winning praise from international lenders and investors.