It was a quiet ceremony as Mozambique swore in its new president, Daniel Chapo, in January. There was none of the loud celebration to be expected at such an occasion – in fact, the political opposition boycotted the event and eight people were reportedly killed as they protested against it.1
More than 56 per cent of Mozambique’s 17 million eligible voters abstained from the election, which took place in October 2024.2 The official results showed that Chapo, the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo) candidate, won against the independent popular political leader Venâncio Mondlane. Frelimo has led Mozambique for the past 50 years, since its independence from Portugal in 1975.
