Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera concedes defeat in presidential election

LILONGWE -- Malawi's incumbent president Lazarus Chakwera on Wednesday conceded defeat in the Sept 16 presidential election in which former president Peter Mutharika is leading by over one million votes.

Speaking in a televised address less than two hours before the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC)'s scheduled announcement of final results for the election, Chakwera thanked all Malawians for their support over the past five years.

In the last update on the official presidential results Monday, Mutharika had over two million votes against Chakwera's over 700,000 votes.

"It's well clear that my main rival, His Excellency Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party, had already secured an insurmountable lead and is the presumptive winner of the presidential election," said Chakwera of the Malawi Congress Party.

"For this reason, a moment ago I called Professor Mutharika directly to congratulate him on his historic victory and to wish him well in his upcoming tenure as the seventh President of the Republic of Malawi," he said.

He thanked his supporters, saying he would "forever be grateful for your trust in me and for your support of my candidacy," and urged all Malawians to support Mutharika's drive for national prosperity.

Chakwera also hailed the MEC for what he described as a commendable job in presiding over the general elections.