Campaign
Campaigning for the election began on 13 September 2009. There were 17 parties and two coalitions competing in the parliamentary election. Provincial assemblies were also at stake in the election. Citing problems in the papers submitted by the MDM when it filed to run, the National Elections Commission barred it from contesting the parliamentary election in nine out of 13 regions. Simango, who insisted there were no problems with the papers, was allowed to stand as a presidential candidate.
Prior to the election, Guebuza was heavily favored to win another term, and RENAMO, mired in a bitter feud with Simango and the MDM, was thought to have been seriously weakened since the previous election, held in 2004. On 14 October 2009, 20 minor parties backed Simango's candidacy. The Independent Party of Mozambique (PIMO), another minor party, chose to support Guebuza.
On the last day of campaigning, 25 October, each of the three main candidates held major rallies. At FRELIMO's rally in Nampula, Guebuza stressed a commitment to fighting poverty and working for "national unity, peace and development". Dhlakama concluded his campaign with rallies in Maputo, and he criticized the predominant role of FRELIMO in society: "Everything is mixed together today in Mozambique. The party, the police, schools, roads, journalists—everything has to be through FRELIMO. This has to stop." Simango, meanwhile, held his last rally in Beira, declaring that it was time to "end the games, end the abuses"; he pointed to the problems of unemployment and lack of medicine in hospitals when urging his supporters to turn out for the vote.
Voting at central Maputo's Polana secondary school on election day, Dklahama said that if he lost the election he would not run for President again. He also called for a high turnout, while stressing the importance of respecting the results and avoiding a post-election dispute.
Read more about this topic: Mozambican General Election, 2009
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