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The Malawi Electoral Council said on Friday that it was suspending the update of this week's election results in order to resolve complaints filed by some of the parties.
A count of votes in three quarters of polling stations in the country, released Thursday, revealed that outgoing President Peter Mutharika was leading with 40.9%.
His closest rival, Lazarus Chakwera of Malawi's Congress Party, won 35.44 percent of the vote.
"At this stage, the commission will not provide an update on the income statement, because the announcement of the results is closely related to the resolution of complaints and concerns," said the president of the Electoral Commission, Jane Ansah.
She said that her commission had received 147 complaints. Tuesday's elections elected a president, legislators and municipal councilors, and the complaints concerned all three levels.
The electoral body must announce the final results within eight days of the vote.
"The commission uses every moment day and night to make sure we provide a credible result of the voting process," said Ansah.
"We will ensure that every vote counted at the polling station is counted in the national count."
The most important complaint was that the figures on the results sheets had been altered by a liquid corrector, according to the electoral bodies, spread throughout the country.
"Our legal team reviews all complaints received and gives timely advice to the complainants," she said.
Chakwera warned Wednesday of alleged attempts to rig the vote, claiming that his MCP had made his own count and that this, he said, showed that he was ahead.
The European Union Observer Mission described the vote as "well managed, inclusive, transparent and competitive".
But he said the tension during the campaign "has not been helped by various accusations of" rigging "".
Southeast Africa has about 6.8 million potential voters, more than half of whom are under 35 years of age.
Participation data have not been published.
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