Patriotic Front (Zambia)
Encyclopedia
The Patriotic Front movement is the Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....

n ruling political party. It is currently the most widely supported political party in Zambia. The Party was formed by Michael Sata
Michael Sata
Michael Chilufya Sata is a Zambian politician who has been the fifth President of Zambia since 23 September 2011. He leads the Patriotic Front , a major political party in Zambia. Under President Frederick Chiluba, Sata was a minister during the 1990s as part of the Movement for Multiparty...

 as a breakaway party of the MMD
Movement for Multiparty Democracy
The Movement for Multi-party Democracy is a political party in Zambia. Originally formed to oust the previous government, MMD controlled an absolute majority in parliament between 1991 and 2001, when its past leader, Frederick Chiluba was president of the country...

 in 2001. This was after the then-president Frederick Chiluba
Frederick Chiluba
Frederick Jacob Titus Chiluba was a Zambian politician who was the second President of Zambia from 1991 to 2002. Chiluba, a trade union leader, won the country's multi-party presidential election in 1991 as the candidate of the Movement for Multiparty Democracy , defeating long-time President...

 nominated Levy Mwanawasa
Levy Mwanawasa
Levy Patrick Mwanawasa was the third President of Zambia. He ruled the country from January 2002 until his death in August 2008. He is credited for having initiated a campaign to rid the country of corruption...

 as the MMD's presidential candidate for 2001 elections. In the presidential election held on 27 December 2001 Sata won 3.4% of the vote. In the legislative elections on the same day the party won 2.8% of popular votes and 1 out of 158 seats. In the 2006 elections, the patriotic front came second winning 46 Constituencies out of the 158 Constituencies. The Patriotic Front swept local government seats in Copperbelt
Copperbelt Province
Copperbelt Province in Zambia covers the mineral-rich Copperbelt, and farming and bush areas to the south. It was the backbone of the Northern Rhodesian economy during British colonial rule and fuelled the hopes of the immediate post-independence period, but its economic importance was severely...

 and Lusaka
Lusaka
Lusaka is the capital and largest city of Zambia. It is located in the southern part of the central plateau, at an elevation of about 1,300 metres . It has a population of about 1.7 million . It is a commercial centre as well as the centre of government, and the four main highways of Zambia head...

, and a large number of the urban constituencies in the Northern
Northern Province, Zambia
Northern Province is one of Zambia's nine provinces. It covers approximately one fifth of Zambia in land area. The provincial capital is Kasama. The province is made up of 12 districts, namely Kasama , Chilubi, Isoka, Chinsali, Kaputa, Luwingu, Mbala, Mporokoso, Mpika, Mpulungu, Mungwi and Nakonde...

 and Luapula
Luapula Province
Luapula Province is one of Zambia's nine provinces, and is located in the north of the country. The provincial capital is Mansa. Luapula Province was named after the Luapula River....

 provinces.

Formation

The Patriotic Front was formed as a political party in 2001. In 2000, after Chiluba
Frederick Chiluba
Frederick Jacob Titus Chiluba was a Zambian politician who was the second President of Zambia from 1991 to 2002. Chiluba, a trade union leader, won the country's multi-party presidential election in 1991 as the candidate of the Movement for Multiparty Democracy , defeating long-time President...

 lost a bid to change the constitution
Constitution
A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...

 to allow him to stand for third term, Michael Sata thought he would be endorsed as the MMD presidential candidate. The answer was given in 2001 when Chiluba noted that none of those (including Sata) who were in his government at the time were capable of winning the elections. At a secret ballot, Chiluba personally nominated Mwanawasa and voted for him to be the presidential candidate. "The choice of Mwanawasa upset Sata who had supported Chiluba’s third term bid so much that he left the MMD to form his own political party, the PF". At the same time, notable figures like the late Christon Tembo
Christon Tembo
Lt. Gen. Christon Tembo was a vice-president and army commander in Zambia. He was foreign minister from 1995 to 1996 and then vice-president from 1997 to 2001...

, Godfrey Miyanda
Godfrey Miyanda
Brigadier General Godfrey Miyanda is a Zambian politician and former military figure. In 1994 he became Vice President of Zambia under Frederick Chiluba's administration. Formerly a member of the ruling Movement for Multi-Party Democracy, Miyanda is the President of the Heritage Party.-References:...

 and Edith Nawakwi formed the Forum for Democracy and Development
Forum for Democracy and Development
The Forum for Democracy and Development is a political party in Zambia.The FDD was founded in 2001 by former members of the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy , disaffected by Frederick Chiluba's efforts to change the constitution to allow him to stand for a third term...

 Party(FDD). Michael Sata became the PF presindent, and as such contested the 2001 presidential election but did not do well, winning only 3.4% of the vote.

In the 2006 presidential election, Sata declared himself the winner before the vote counting process was over. The final official results placed him in second place, a situation that caused civil unrest among his supporters.

2001 elections

2006 elections

Sata was again the party's candidate for the presidential election held on September 28, 2006. He came in second place to incumbent Mwanawasa with 29% of the vote. In the parliamentary elections the PF gained 46 out of 158 seats.

2008 elections

In the 2008 presidential by-elections, Sata came second. Rupiah Banda
Rupiah Banda
Rupiah Bwezani Banda is a Zambian politician who was President of Zambia from 2008 to 2011.During the Presidency of Kenneth Kaunda, Banda held important diplomatic posts and was active in politics as a member of the United National Independence Party...

 won the elections with 41% against Mr. Sata who got 38%.

Merging/working with other political parties

in 2009, The PF signed a memorandum of understanding to work with the United Party for National Development
United Party for National Development
The United Party for National Development is a liberal political party in Zambia.At the 2001 legislative elections, held on 27 December 2001, the party won 23.3% of popular votes and 49 out of 159 seats...

and contest elections together.

External links

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