Lesotho votes for new parliament amid continuing political crisis

Lesotho citizens have voted in a parliamentary election that political analysts said could see the ruling party lose power after years of political instability that the Southern African mountain kingdom’s legislators have failed to resolve.

Friday’s election has gone ahead despite a deadlock in parliament on a gamut of constitutional reforms that were meant to be enacted ahead of the vote to bring order to Lesotho’s fractious politics.

The All Basotho Convention (ABC) has run the country of 2.14 million people since 2017, but divisions within the party have seen two prime ministers installed over five years.

Defections, meanwhile, have left the party vulnerable to its opposition rivals, the Democratic Congress (DC) and the new Revolution for Prosperity (RFP), which is led by businessman Sam Matekane.

“These elections will be highly contested and by the look of things, the DC and RFP will be neck and neck,” said Lesotho political analyst Lefu Thaela, who saw the ABC trailing in third place.

Agencies