Zambia’s Constitutional Court Bars Ex-President Edgar Lungu from Re-Election.

Last month, Edgar Lungu was picked by the opposition Tonse Alliance to be its presidential candidate in the 2026 election. Courtesy image.

Zambia’s Constitutional Court has ruled that former President Edgar Lungu is ineligible to stand for re-election in the 2026 general elections. The court determined that Lungu, 68, has already served the maximum two terms allowed by the Zambian Constitution.

Lungu initially came to power in January 2015 after the death of President Michael Sata in October 2014. He served the remaining 20 months of Sata’s term before winning re-election in 2016. However, he argued that his first stint should not count as a full term since it was less than five years.

The court, however, disagreed, stating that Lungu has been elected and served as president twice, fulfilling the constitutional limit. “Mr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu has therefore been twice elected and has twice held office. The [constitution] makes him ineligible to participate in any future elections as a presidential candidate,” the ruling read.

This decision reverses previous rulings that had cleared Lungu to contest the 2021 elections, which he lost to current President Hakainde Hichilema.

The ruling brings clarity to Zambia’s constitutional interpretation of presidential term limits, setting a firm precedent for the future.

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