Moshupa-Manyana is a largely rural constituency situated in Botswana's south-eastern hardveld. The constituency's terrain is dotted with low granite, undulating koppies and seasonal river valleys.[1][2] Most households practise mixed farming (goats, poultry and rain-fed crops) or commute to Kanye, the Jwaneng diamond mine, or Gaborone for work.
The seat, known as Moshupa until 2014, has existed in one form or another since the country's inaugural general election in 1965, making it one of Botswana's longest-standing constituencies.
It is one of only two existing constituencies in Botswana that have never returned a Member of Parliament from more than one party, the other being neighbouring Thamaga-Kumakwane. In every election since 1965, the BDP has always polled above 50% of the popular vote, the only constituency in the country where the BDP has done so.
Political life in the constituency has been closely associated with the Masisi family, one of Botswana's most prominent political families.[3][4] Diplomat, cabinet minister and career politician Edison Masisi served as MP for three decades (1965–1999) and his son, future president Mokgweetsi Masisi, held the seat from 2009 until he assumed the presidency in 2018.
The elevation of Mokgweetsi Masisi to the presidency produced a pronounced favourite son effect: at the 2019 election the BDP vote share surged to 85 percent (up from 54 percent in 2014) which made Moshupa-Manyana the safest seat in the country, with the BDP winning the seat by a majority of 70 percentage points. This marked the first time in Botswana's electoral history that the safest constituency was not one of the constituencies anchored around the Ngwato capital of Serowe.
The 2019 landslide was also brought about due to a wider realignment triggered by President Masisi's public falling-out with former president and Ngwato Kgosi (paramount chief) Ian Khama, which led to a dramatic swing against the BDP in Khama's northern heartland but equally increased support for the party across much of the south.[5][6][7]
Despite a strong nationwide swing against the BDP in 2024—when the party lost 34 of the 38 constituencies it had won in 2019—Moshupa-Manyana remained in BDP hands as its 2019 majority proved too insurmountable to overcome. The seat, along with Thamaga-Kumakwane, was one of only two constituencies where the BDP won with an outright majority of the vote at that election.
The largely rural constituency encompasses the following localities:[8]
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