Zimbabwean voting extended by extra day after ballot delays

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa has extended the country's general election by an extra day.

In a government gazette late Wednesday evening, Mnangagwa extended voting at certain polling stations in Harare and Manicaland province to Thursday after a delay by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) in delivering ballot papers.

By 11pm on Wednesday, some polling stations in Harare had not yet received ballot papers.

Two watchdog groups — the Election Resource Centre (ERC) and Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) — said there was widespread intimidation of voters.

“Observers reported on the presence of Zanu-PF which is manning exit polls and recording names of voters. Observers alleged that the exercise is intimidating to voters. [There was] an isolated incident of a ZESN observer beaten in Gutu West, in Masvingo province.

“While observers reported a relatively routine set-up process in the polling stations that opened on time, the acute disparity of voting delays between urban centres and the rest of the country raises questions regarding voter equality and access,” they said.

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