Zambia Election Panel Survey Dataset

The Zambian Election Panel Survey (ZEPS) data allows for analysis of voter perceptions and choices in the August 2021 elections – and how these were affected by the tactics of the competing parties and candidates. The panel design provides an opportunity to study how, when and why former supporters of incumbent president Lungu ‘defected’ to support his rival, Hakainde Hichilema (HH) in 2021. This multistage panel survey, the first-of-its-kind in Africa, was implemented in three rounds; June 8 – July 3 (R1: n = 1665), July 15 – Aug 10 (R2: n = 1508), and Aug 25 – Oct 3 (R3: n = 1272). These time periods correspond to the early campaign period, late in the campaign period and immediate post-election period, respectively. The survey was conducted over the phone. Responses were disproportionately from urban/peri-urban voters in Central and Lusaka provinces and rural voters in Eastern and Muchinga provinces. 1764 unique responses were collected using SurveyToGo software from Dooblo. 1210 responses were collected for all three rounds.