Malawians are anxiously awaiting a ruling from the constitutional court on an appeal against the election results in May that saw President Peter Mutharika returned to office with 38.6% of the vote.

The losing candidates alleged that the electoral process, especially the way the results were handled, was full of irregularities.

Opposition candidate Lazarus Chakwera went to court to argue that he should have been declared the winner – his official share of the vote was 35.4%. A former ally of the president, Saulos Chilima, who came third with 20.2%, is also challenging the election result. Protesters have backed their complaint.

In court, the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) defended its handling of the vote as being in keeping with the law.