MDC, Zanu-PF claim win
UNCERTAINTY: OPPOSITION OFFICIAL BITI, MNANGAGWA IN HIGH SPIRITS Rival claims points to a contested result, raising prospect of a possible runoff vote.
Zimbabwe’s opposition party Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) Alliance yesterday claimed victory in the country’s historic elections, setting the scene for a showdown with the ruling Zanu-PF that has held power since independence in 1980.
Senior MDC-Alliance official Tendai Biti said party leader Nelson Chamisa had won the presidential race and alleged the authorities were delaying the publication of results.
“The results show beyond reasonable doubt that we have won the election and that the next president of Zimbabwe is Nelson Chamisa,” Biti said in Harare. “We are, however, seriously concerned about evidence of interference ... there is a deliberate delay in announcing the results. This delay is totally unacceptable.”
President Emmerson Mnangagwa has also said he was confident of victory in the first election since president Robert Mugabe was ousted in November after 37 years in power.
“The information from our reps on the ground is extremely positive! Waiting patiently for official results as per the constitution,” Mnangagwa said on Twitter yesterday.
The rival claims pointed to a contested result, raising the prospect of competing fraud allegations and a possible runoff vote in September – required if no candidate wins at least 50% of ballots in the first round.
If required, Zimbabwe’s 5.6 million registered voters would be asked to return to the polls to vote in a presidential runoff on September 8.
Analysts have said it was unclear whether the country’s generals, who ousted Mugabe and ushered Mnangagwa into office, would accept a win by the MDC-Alliance.
Defeat for Zanu-PF would likely lead “to a denunciation of the election by the Mnangagwa administration and potential for the military to intervene to secure power for Zanu-PF”, the London-based BMI risk consultancy said.
The estimated turnout was about 75% before polls closed on Monday evening after a peaceful day of voting. Early results – presidential, parliamentary and local – were expected yesterday and full results are due by Saturday.
Zimbabwe’s much-criticised election authority – Zimbabwean Election Commission – declared yesterday that the vote had been free of rigging – even though the count was not yet completed.
Mugabe, 94, whose authoritarian regime held power through violent, fraud-riddled elections, voted in Harare alongside his wife Grace after a surprise press conference at his home on Sunday at which he called for voters to reject Zanu-PF, his former party.
The once-banned European Union election observers, present for the first time in years, said participation appeared high but warned of possible problems in the polling process.
The bloc is expected to deliver a preliminary report on the conduct of the election today, as will the Southern African Development Community and the African Union teams.
Chamisa, 40, has repeatedly accused Zanu-PF and election authorities of trying to fix the result via a flawed electoral roll, ballot paper malpractice and voter intimidation. –