Lucas is the only candidate alongside Botswana Democratic Party (BDP)’s chairperson, Slumber Tsogwane, to have contested the General Election every election year since 1999. While Lucas’ door-knocking efforts against BDP’s James Maruatona in 1999 earned him just 1244 votes, the race marked the start of a passion that would eventually launch him into the record books for having contested, and lost, the general elections for a period spanning 20 years. Lucas made a second act in 2004 only to lose but this time to entrant Shaw Kgathi of the BDP. With Lucas there was no ‘you lose, you leave’ rule as he confirmed a rematch with Kgathi again in 2009 but ended up losing by a margin of 840 votes.
Lucas felt he was close and took another try at Kgathi in the 2014 General Election only to lose by a margin of 120 votes. The man was determined to become an MP. He spent years building up his numbers in what was an impressive trajectory. Every five years, Lucas reemerged slowly building a personal brand, perhaps, sending a message that a plausible path to the National Assembly is looming. Lucas felt he was closing in so when Kgathi lost his party primaries to Francisco Kgoboko in 2019. He then decided to take on a third BDP candidate since he began his quest in 1999. Two decades later, Lucas finally removed the perennial loser label when he defeated Kgoboko with an 853 vote margin in a historic feat. Everything changed and, Lucas finally collected his prize.
