Zimbabwe president ‘humbled’ by poll win as rival ready to fight
Newly-elected leader won 50.8 per cent of vote and has called for unity
Zimbabwe’s president Emmerson Mnangagwa won the country’s election with just over 50 per cent of the ballots as the ruling party maintained control of the government in the first vote since the fall of long-time leader Robert Mugabe.
Mr Mnangagwa received 50.8 per cent of the vote, while main opposition challenger Nelson Chamisa received 44.3 per cent.
The opposition is almost certain to challenge the results in the courts or on the streets.
While election day was peaceful in a break from the past, deadly violence on Wednesday against people protesting alleged vote-rigging reminded many Zimbabweans of the decades of military-backed repression under Mr Mugabe.
Zimbabwe’s president says he was “humbled” by his win.
“Though we may have been divided at the polls, we are united in our dreams,” Mr Mnangagwa said.
“This is a new beginning. Let us join hands, in peace, unity and love, and together build a new Zimbabwe for all!”
Mr Mnangagwa tweeted after a week that started with peaceful voting on Monday, but spiralled into deadly violence in the capital two days later as the military fired on protesters.
Six people died in the military crackdown.
Western election observers who were banned in previous elections have expressed concern at the military’s “excessive” force in the capital Harare. Their assessments of the election are crucial to the lifting of international sanctions on a country whose economy collapsed years ago.
Shortly before the election commission’s announcement yesterday, Morgen Komichi, the chief agent for Mr Chamisa’s opposition alliance, took the stage and said his party “totally rejects” the results.
Mr Komichi said he had not signed the election results. Police escorted him from the room.
Later Mr Komichi said the elections were “fraudulent” and “everything has been done illegally”. He said he had refused an electoral commission request to sign papers certifying Mr Mnangagwa’s win.
An independent election observers group has urged the electoral commission to urgently release results from individual polling stations to allay concerns about possible irregularities in Monday’s vote.
The local Zimbabwe Election Support Network said the commission should post the information on its website “to enhance transparency and accountability”.
However, commission chair Priscilla Chigumba urged the country to “move on” with the hopeful spirit of election day and beyond the “blemishes” of Wednesday’s chaos.
“May God bless this nation and its people,” she said.
With the military still deployed in Harare, the capital’s streets were quiet following the announcement of Mr Mnangagwa’s victory.
The military appeared to have vanished from Harare’s streets yesterday.
But water cannons and police remained present at the headquarters of the main opposition party – a day after authorities raided it and made 18 arrests.
China’s government had said it wants to work with the international community to safeguard Zimbabwe’s “peace, stability and development”.
“As a friendly country to Zimbabwe, we call on the relevant sides to keep in mind the relevant country and people’s interest and respect the choice made by the zimbabwe an people ,” Geng Shuang, spokes man for China’ s foreign ministry, said in Beijing.
Mr Chamisa had declared “we have removed Mugabe but not Mugabe-ism”.
The military deployment was the first time that soldiers had appeared in the streets of the capital since Mr Mugabe’s resignation.