General elections in Basutoland in 1960
The general elections in Basutoland 1960 took place on January 20, 1960 in the British crown colony of Basutoland . It was the first election involving political parties in Basutoland, which became independent as Lesotho six years later .
Starting position
Until 1960, the British colonial administration relied primarily on the country's traditional rulers ( barena ). At the same time, political groups such as Lekhotla la Bafo emerged , which were represented with a few representatives in the Basutoland National Council (BNC) founded in 1903 . From 1943, there were elections at the district level, from which first one, then two and from 1950 four representatives were sent to the BNC for each district. From 1952, the Basutoland African Congress (BAC) under Ntsu Mokhehle was the first political party. It was pan - African and soon renamed itself the Basutoland Congress Party (BCP). The second party, the monarchist Marema Tlou Party, was founded in 1956 , followed by the conservative Basutoland National Party (BNP) under Leabua Jonathan in 1957 . In September 1959, with the approval of the colonial authorities, a new constitution came into force. For the first time, party candidates were able to provide half of the BNC members.
procedure
The actual elections took place on January 20, 1960 at the district level. A total of 162 MPs were elected in the nine districts. The MPs elected there designated a total of 40 MPs from the BNC. 40 other MPs, mostly traditional rulers, were chosen by the barena . Only taxpayers were eligible to vote, i.e. almost no women and no migrant workers , who traditionally make up a large population group.
Result
Of around 191,000 registered voters, around 35,000 took part in the vote. The BCP received 36.2% of the vote and was able to win six of the nine districts. At the district level they had 73 elected officials, but in the BNC they had 30 of the 40 elected MPs. Independents received 35.3 percent of the vote and provided 51 district MPs and four BNC representatives; the BNP received 22 district mandates and one BNC mandate with a share of the votes of 19.8%, the MFP with 8.7% 16 mandates in the districts and five in the BNC.
consequences
The BCP had won the most seats. However, since half of the representation consisted of nominated barena , the BCP did not have a majority there and could not implement its ideas. The “protocabinet” formed after the election consisted of four ministers, none of whom belonged to the BCP. On March 12, 1960, the newly elected BNC met for the first time. On the same day, which commemorated the founder of the Basotho nation Moshoeshoe I as a public holiday , Bereng Seeiso, supported by the MFP, was enthroned as King Moshoeshoe II .
Jonathan had lost the election, but was able to make a name for himself after he had received a vacant seat as an appointed MP from Moshoeshoe II. Jonathan won the subsequent elections in 1965 and became the king's fiercest opponent.
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