The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) has defended the 30 percent overspending on the 2025 elections budget, saying the rise was driven by unavoidable operational adjustments.

Last week, during the presentation of mid-year budget review in Parliament, Finance Minister Joseph Mwanamvekha revealed that the elections budget jumped by K50 billion, from the approved K162.9 billion to K212.9 billion.

Now, MEC Director of Media and Public Relations, Sangwani Mwafulirwa, told Zodiak on Thursday that the increase reflects realities that emerged after the initial budget was approved.

Mwafulirwa says that several critical factors contributed to the budget overrun, including the establishment of additional tally centres and polling stations. 

He explained that negotiations for national, council and constituency tally centres were only possible after budget approval, making initial estimates lower than the actual cost.

Mwafulirwa added that reducing the maximum number of voters per polling station from 800 to 600 also triggered a rise in operational expenses. 

“The change meant we had to create more polling stations to avoid long queues. More stations meant more staff, more fuel and more consumables,” he said.

He further explained that the Commission faced challenges in sourcing vehicles and boats from government ministries as initially planned, forcing MEC to hire additional equipment. 

“The shortfall in vehicles from MDAs only became clear later, and that pushed up hiring, fuel and driver costs,” Mwafulirwa noted.

Meanwhile, Chairperson for Centre for Multiparty Democracy (CMD), Bonface Chibwana says a small budget deviation in an elections is inevitable, so as it is justifiable.

Despite the overspending, Mwafulirwa assured Malawians that the situation will not affect the upcoming by-elections.

“There is no effect on the by-elections. The Commission has made provisions to ensure all electoral activities proceed smoothly,” he said.