On 7 October, the Kingdom of Lesotho held National Assembly elections.

Following an invitation by the Kingdom of Lesotho, the European Union deployed its first-ever Election Observation Mission (EOM) to the country, to undertake an independent, impartial assessment of all aspects of the electoral process.

In its preliminary statement presented by Chief Observer Ignazio Corrao, on 9 October in Maseru, the EU EOM noted that the National Assembly elections have been well run and conducted in a peaceful atmosphere. Some financial shortcomings, legal uncertainty and uneven playing field for contestants were reported by the Mission as well. Critical stages of the electoral process remain.

The EU EOM will observe the post-election developments and stay in the country until the completion of the electoral process. The Mission will then analyse all the relevant findings fully and publish its final report, offering recommendations to improve future electoral processes.

The European Union is committed to support the Kingdom of Lesotho in implementing the long-awaited reforms that are required to develop strong, democratic, and inclusive institutions and to ensure a peaceful and prosperous future for all its people.

For more information:

Preliminary statement – EU EOM Lesotho