Election victory marred by criticism of voting process from other parties and official observers

Emmerson Mnangagwa has a secured second term as Zimbabwe’s president in a poll marred by electoral malpractice.

The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) declared Mnangagwa the winner, with 52.6% of the vote, beating Nelson Chamisa of the Citizens’ Coalition for Change (CCC), who trailed at 44%.

Polling described as ‘shambolic’, with electoral body accused of conspiring with ruling party to ‘disenfranchise’ opposition voters

Voting in Zimbabwe’s election has been extended by another day after huge delays in the delivery of ballot papers to some wards.

The country’s president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, issued a decree late on Wednesday to extend voting by another day in 40 wards across Harare, and the provinces of Mashonaland Central and Manicaland, as the government tried to salvage polling that had been described as “shambolic”.

Most urban polling stations in Harare and Bulawayo, where opposition claims it has strong support, open four hours late

Delays have marred voting in Zimbabwe’s general election after a campaign dominated by the country’s interlinked economic crises.

Voting at most urban polling stations in Harare and Bulawayo began four hours late after polling officers failed to distribute papers for the council elections. Some polling stations were still to receive election material more than seven hours after polls opened.

Promises to get inflation and unemployment on track after decades of Mugabe rule have failed to materialise

An ever-worsening economic situation is hanging over Zimbabwean voters as they go to the polls in a repeat of the 2018 election pitting President Emmerson Mnangagwa against his charismatic and relatively youthful challenger, Nelson Chamisa.

Mnangagwa narrowly defeated Chamisa five years ago after the coup that deposed Robert Mugabe, and pledged to to tackle the economy “head on” in his first term. However, unemployment, inflation and falls in the value of the Zimdollar have persisted.