Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa wins re-election after troubled vote

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa was re-elected for a second and final five-year term Saturday as results were announced much earlier than expected following a troubled vote in the southern African country.

An opposition party spokesperson said within minutes of the results being announced that they would reject them as “hastily assembled without proper verification.”

Mnangagwa won 52.6% of the votes in the midweek election, the Zimbabwe Election Commission said in a late-night announcement in the capital, Harare. Main opposition leader Nelson Chamisa got 44%, the commission said. The results were released around 11.30 p.m.

The result will likely be closely scrutinized after election observers from the European Union and African Union raised questions over the environment in the buildup to the vote and pointed to an atmosphere of intimidation against Chamisa’s supporters.

There were also problems with the actual vote.

The election had been due to be held on just Wednesday, but voting was extended to Thursday after delays with the printing of ballot papers. Results of the presidential election came a suprising two days after voting closed, much earlier than what had been expected to be a Monday announcement.

“We reject any results hastily assembled without proper verification,” said Promise Mkwananzi, a spokesperson for Chamisa’s Citizens Coalition for Change Party. “We will advise citizens on the next steps as the situation develops.”

The result keeps the presidency in the hands of the ZANU-PF party, which has run the government for all 43 years since Zimbabwe won independence from white minority rule in 1980 and will now extend its rule to nearly a half century with Mnangagwa’s victory.

ZANU-PF also retained its parliamentary majority in the election.

“This is a very happy occasion indeed,” said Ziyambi Ziyambi, an election agent for Mnangagwa and a Cabinet minister. “Zimbabweans have shown confidence in our president and ZANU-PF.”

Mnangagwa replaced long-ruling autocrat Robert Mugabe in a coup in 2017 and won a disputed election by a razor-thin margin against Chamisa in 2018.

Ahead of Saturday’s announcement of the results, dozens of armed police with water cannons guarded the national results center. It was the scene of deadly violence after the previous election five years ago, when soldiers killed six people during protests over delays in announcing presidential election results.

This election was marked by more trouble in a country with a history of violent and disputed votes.

Voting ran over into Thursday after delays in distributing ballot papers in the capital, Harare, and other urban areas prompted Mnangagwa to extend the election by a day. Voters slept outside polling stations in urban areas that are opposition strongholds to cast their ballots.

Many people in the country of 15 million are sure to view the result with suspicion.

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