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Shoshong (Botswana constituency)

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Shoshong
Single-member constituency
for the National Assembly
Boundary of Shoshong in Botswana
DistrictCentral District
Population31,267[1]
Area10,580 km2
Current constituency
Created1965
Party  BDP
MPAubrey Lesaso
Margin of victory2,174 (35.4 pp)

Shoshong is a constituency in the Central District represented in the National Assembly of Botswana by Aubrey Lesaso, a BDP MP and Assistant Minister for Tertiary Education, originally elected as a UDC MP in 2019.

Constituency profile

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Situated in the southeast of the Central District of Botswana, the Shoshong constituency was established in 1965 for the country's inaugural elections and is one of Botswana's longest extant constituencies.

Reflecting the dominant Ngwato population, the constituency was historically a Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) stronghold. From 1965 to 2014, the BDP consistently garnered an average of 80% of the vote. However, since the turn of the century, the BDP's dominance began to wane, with its vote share decreasing in each subsequent election.

In 2019, echoing a broader trend within the district, a significant political realignment occurred as Ian Khama, paramount chief of the Ngwato tribe fell out with the incumbent president, Mokgweetsi Masisi and leader of the BDP. This political discord impacted the constituency's voting patterns.[2][3] The 2019 election saw a significant 22-point swing towards the opposition Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) from the BDP, marking their strongest national performance and the first time an opposition party won Shoshong.

The constituency, predominantly rural, encompasses the following villages:[4]

  1. Shoshong
  2. Mmutlane
  3. Kalamare
  4. Bonwapitse
  5. Mosolotshane
  6. Ikongwe
  7. Kodibeleng
  8. Otse
  9. Mokgenene
  10. Poloka
  11. Moralane
  12. Dibete

Members of Parliament

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Key:   BDP   UDC

Election Winner
1965 election Goareng Mosinyi
1969 election
1974 election
1979 election
1984 election
1989 election Esther Mosinyi
1994 election Modibedi Robi
1999 election Gobopang Lefhoko
2004 election
2009 election Dikgang Makgalemele
2014 election
2019 election Aubrey Lesaso

Election results

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2019 election

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General election 2019: Shoshong[5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
UDC Aubrey Lesaso 5,377 65.02 +22.69
BDP Dikgang Makgalemele 3,843 29.61 −21.78
AP Brine Mogametsi 697 5.37 New
Margin of victory 2,174 35.40 N/A
Total valid votes 12,977 98.39 +0.50
Rejected ballots 213 1.61 −0.50
Turnout 13,190 82.63 –3.34
Registered electors 15,962
UDC gain from BDP Swing +22.24

2014 election

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General election 2014: Shoshong[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Dikgang Makgalemele 5,377 51.39 −4.64
UDC Aubrey Lesaso 4,429 42.33 +5.09
BCP Pono Magowe 413 3.95 −2.78
Independent Tibe Tibe 244 2.33 New
Margin of victory 948 9.06 –9.74
Total valid votes 10,463 97.89 +0.77
Rejected ballots 226 2.11 −0.77
Turnout 10,689 85.97 +9.21
Registered electors 12,434
BDP hold Swing −0.23

2009 election

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General election 2009: Shoshong[7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Dikgang Makgalemele 4,820 56.03 −8.43
BNF Aubrey Lesaso 3,203 37.24 +4.33
BCP Senalebeng Mokgosi 579 6.73 −0.03
Margin of victory 1,617 18.80 −8.62
Total valid votes 8,602 97.12 −0.94
Rejected ballots 255 2.88 +0.94
Turnout 8,857 76.76 −4.74
Registered electors 11,538
BDP hold Swing −2.05

2004 election

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General election 2004: Shoshong[8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Gobopang Lefhoko 3,391 64.46 −5.58
BNF Patrick Malakaila 1,850 32.91 +6.92
BCP Gontlefela Mokongwa 380 6.76 +2.79
Margin of victory 1,541 27.42 −16.63
Total valid votes 5,621 98.06 +3.30
Rejected ballots 362 1.94 −3.30
Turnout 5,983 81.50 +7.28
Registered electors 7,341
BDP hold Swing +0.67

1999 election

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General election 1999: Shoshong[9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Gobopang Lefhoko 4,589 70.04 −3.36
BNF D. T. Morotsi 1,703 25.99 −0.61
BCP S. J. Mphoyakgosi 260 3.97 New
Margin of victory 2,886 44.05 −2.74
Total valid votes 6,552 94.76 N/A
Rejected ballots 362 5.24 N/A
Turnout 6,914 74.22 +1.81
Registered electors 9,315
BDP hold Swing −1.38

1994 election

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General election 1994: Shoshong[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Modibedi Robi 4,315 73.40 −12.40
BNF Bailekae Ramahosi 1,564 26.60 +12.40
Margin of victory 2,751 46.79 −24.81
Turnout 5,879 72.41 +10.13
Registered electors 8,119
BDP hold Swing –12.40

1989 election

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General election 1989: Shoshong[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Esther Mosinyi 3,910 85.80 −11.16
BNF Bailekae Ramahosi 647 14.20 +11.16
Margin of victory 3,263 71.60 −22.33
Turnout 4,557 62.28 −11.01
Registered electors 7,317
BDP hold Swing –11.16

1984 election

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General election 1984: Shoshong
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Goareng Mosinyi 4,630 96.96 +0.17
BNF Bailekae Ramahosi 145 3.04 −0.17
Margin of victory 4,485 93.93 +0.36
Turnout 4,775 73.29 +3.97
Registered electors 6,515
BDP hold Swing +0.17

1979 election

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General election 1979: Shoshong[11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Goareng Mosinyi 4,909 96.79 +2.17
BIP M. M. Tlale 163 3.21 −2.17
Margin of victory 4,746 93.57 +4.33
Turnout 5,072 69.32 +32.42
Registered electors 7,317
BDP hold Swing +2.17

1974 election

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General election 1974: Shoshong[12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Goareng Mosinyi 2,885 94.62 −1.25
BIP M. M. Tlale 164 5.38 +1.25
Margin of victory 2,721 89.24 −2.51
Turnout 3,049 36.90 −26.97
Registered electors 8,262
BDP hold Swing –1.25

1969 election

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General election 1969: Shoshong[13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
BDP Goareng Mosinyi 4,274 95.87 +1.39
BIP M. M. Tlale 184 4.13 −0.39
Margin of victory 4,090 91.75 +0.79
Turnout 3,423 63.87 N/A
Registered electors 6,980
BDP hold Swing +0.89

1965 election

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General election 1965: Shoshong[14]
Party Candidate Votes %
BDP Goareng Mosinyi 6,295 95.48
BIP M.M. Tlale 298 4.52
Margin of victory 5,997 90.96
Turnout 6,593 N/A
Registered electors N/A
BDP win (new seat)

References

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  1. ^ 2022 DELIMITATION COMMISSION REPORT (PDF). 2022. p. 44.
  2. ^ Seabo, Batlang; Nyenhuis, Robert (2021-11-23). "Botswana's 2019 General Elections: A Referendum on General Ian Khama". African Studies Review. 64 (4): 854–883. doi:10.1017/asr.2021.69. ISSN 0002-0206. S2CID 244539238.
  3. ^ Basimanebotlhe, Tsaone (2022-10-10). "Serowe constituencies vulnerable as BPF rumpus continues". Mmegi Online. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
  4. ^ REPORT OF THE DELIMITATION COMMISSION, 2012 (PDF). 2012.
  5. ^ Independent Electoral Commission - Botswana National Assembly, 2019
  6. ^ Independent Electoral Commission - Botswana National Assembly, 2014
  7. ^ Independent Electoral Commission - Botswana National Assembly, 2009
  8. ^ Independent Electoral Commission - Botswana National Assembly, 2004
  9. ^ Independent Electoral Commission - Botswana National Assembly, 1999
  10. ^ a b Results by constituency
  11. ^ Democracy in the face of a weak Opposition in Botswana, Brian T. Mokopakgosi & Mpho G. Molomo (2000)
  12. ^ Report to the Minister of State on the general elections, 1974 (PDF). Supervisor of Elections. 1974.
  13. ^ "Report on the General Elections 1969" (PDF). 1969.
  14. ^ Gossett, Charles W.; Kebapetse, Lotshwao (21 April 2013). "Report on the 1965 General Election and the 1966 Local Government Election". Botswana Notes & Records. 41. Rochester, NY: Social Science Research Network (published 2009): 54. SSRN 2254423. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
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