Editing Lesotho Congress for Democracy

{{Short description|Political party in Lesotho}}
{{Distinguish|Democratic Congress}}
{{more citations needed|date=December 2016}}
{{Infobox political party
| name = Lesotho Congress for Democracy
| logo = LCD circle logo.png
| logo_size = 100px
| colorcode = {{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}
| leader = [[Mothetjoa Metsing]]
| chairperson = 
| president = 
| spokesperson = 
| founder = [[Ntsu Mokhehle]]
| slogan = Truth, Justice, Peace<br>'''Nete, Toka, Khotso''
| foundation = 7 June 1997 <!-- {{Start date|YYYY|MM|DD}} -->
| split = [[Basutoland Congress Party]]
| ideology = [[Pan-Africanism]]<br>[[Social democracy]]
| position = [[Centre-left]]
| headquarters = Bonhomme House, [[Maseru]]
| seats1_title = [[National Assembly (Lesotho)|National Assembly]]
| seats1 = {{Composition bar|3|120|hex={{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}}}
| international = [[Socialist International]] <small>(Observer)</small>
| colors = [[Black]], [[Red]], [[Green]]
| website = [https://web.archive.org/web/20110722150108/http://www.lcd.org.ls/ www.lcd.org.ls/]
| flag = [[File:LCD Lesotho flag.gif|200px]]
| country = Lesotho
}} 

The '''Lesotho Congress for Democracy''' (LCD) is a [[political party]] in [[Lesotho]].

In 1997, Prime Minister [[Ntsu Mokhehle]] left the [[Basutoland Congress Party]] to form with his faction the new Lesotho Congress for Democracy. The new party won the 1998 elections with 60.7% of the popular vote and 79 out of 80 seats. [[Pakalitha Mosisili]] became the new party leader and prime minister. At the [[elections in Lesotho|elections]] for the [[National Assembly of Lesotho|National Assembly]], 25 May 2002, the party won 54.9% of popular votes and 77 out of 120 seats. In the 17 February 2007 [[Lesotho parliamentary election, 2007|parliamentary election]], the party won 62 out of 120 seats.<ref>[https://eisa.org.za/wep/les2007results.htm "Lesotho: 2007 National Assembly election results"], Electoral Institute for Sustainable democracy in Africa (''African Democracy Encyclopaedia Project''), February, 2007.</ref>

Major splits from the party occurred in October 2001, when leading LCD members [[Kelebone Maope]] and [[Shakhane Mokhehle]] left the party to form the [[Lesotho People's Congress]] and in October 2006, when [[Tom Thabane]] left the party to form the [[All Basotho Convention]].{{Citation needed|date=May 2012}} Prior to the [[Lesotho general election, 2012]] the party split again with incumbent Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili forming the [[Democratic Congress]] and General Secretary [[Mothetjoa Metsing]] taking over the party leadership.<ref>[http://allafrica.com/stories/201202101099.html]  {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120716003234/http://allafrica.com/stories/201202101099.html |date=July 16, 2012 }}</ref>

== Electoral Performance ==

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! rowspan=2 | Election 
! colspan=2 | Proportional
! colspan=2 | Constituency
! rowspan=2 | Seats 
! rowspan=2 | +/- 
! rowspan=2 | Government 
|-
! Votes
! Share
! Votes
! Share
|-
! [[1998 Lesotho general election|1998]]
| 359,764
| 60.57
| colspan=2 {{N/A}}
| {{Composition bar|79|89|hex={{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}}}
| New
| {{yes|Supermajority}}
|-
! [[2002 Lesotho general election|2002]]
| 304,316
| 54.89
| 309,363
| 57.64
| {{Composition bar|77|120|hex={{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}}}
| {{decrease}} 2
| {{yes2|Majority}}
|-
! [[2007 Lesotho general election|2007]]
| colspan=2 |''did not contest''
| 225,098
| 52.47
| {{Composition bar|61|120|hex={{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}}}
| {{decrease}} 16
| {{yes2|Majority}}
|-
! [[2012 Lesotho general election|2012]]
| 121,076
| 21.94
| colspan=2 {{N/A}}
| {{Composition bar|26|120|hex={{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}}}
| {{decrease}} 35
| {{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
! [[2015 Lesotho general election|2015]]
| 56,467
| 9.91
| colspan=2 {{N/A}}
| {{Composition bar|12|120|hex={{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}}}
| {{decrease}} 14
| {{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
! [[2017 Lesotho general election|2017]]
| 52,052
| 8.95
| colspan=2 {{N/A}}
| {{Composition bar|11|120|hex={{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}}}
| {{decrease}} 1
| {{no2|Opposition}}
|-
! [[2022 Lesotho general election|2022]]
| 12,174
| 2.36
| colspan=2 {{N/A}}
| {{Composition bar|3|120|hex={{party color|Lesotho Congress for Democracy}}}}
| {{decrease}} 8
| {{yes2|Coalition}}
|-
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110722150108/http://www.lcd.org.ls/ Lesotho Congress for Democracy]

{{Lesotho political parties}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lesotho Congress For Democracy}}
[[Category:1997 establishments in Lesotho]]
[[Category:Pan-Africanism in Lesotho]]
[[Category:Pan-Africanist political parties in Africa]]
[[Category:Political parties established in 1997]]
[[Category:Political parties in Lesotho]]
[[Category:Social democratic parties in Africa]]
[[Category:Socialism in Lesotho]]


{{Lesotho-party-stub}}