Zimbabwe's post-election reports show significant drop in electorate turnout

A comprehensive post-election report has revealed that the recent elections were conducted in a highly contested environment, leading to a 6% reduction in voter turnout on average at polling stations in urban areas. This drop was primarily attributed to delays in the delivery of ballot papers.

According to the report from the Election Resource Centre (ERC), urban polling stations that opened on time achieved a 64.8% voter turnout, while those that experienced delays had a 58.8% turnout. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission's failure to deliver local authority ballot papers on time significantly affected the voting process at many urban polling stations.

The ERC's report was the result of observations conducted at 188 polling stations, focusing on constituencies with a rural-urban voting demographic. In rural areas, voter turnout was 70.2% at polling stations that opened on time, compared to 69.2% at those with delays.

The report also noted that 80% of observed polling stations had begun voting by 7:15 AM, but even at these stations, voter turnout was lower by an average of over 10%, suggesting a general decline in voter turnout, not solely due to delays in opening the polling stations.

Overall, national voter turnout for the 2023 harmonized election was reported at 68.9%. However, the observed voter turnout was slightly lower, averaging 66.5%.

The ERC found that at observed polling stations in rural areas, the turnout was 70.3%, 5.0% above the average turnout at observed polling stations and 2.4% above the national average. In urban areas, turnout was 64.2%, 1.1% above the observed average and 4.7% below the national average.

The report highlighted a higher voter turnout in rural constituencies compared to urban ones, with the ruling Zanu-PF receiving significant support from rural areas, while the Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) garnered most of its support from urban areas.

In terms of voter turnout between rural and urban areas, the ERC noted that 76.4% of rural polling stations recorded voter turnouts above the observed average, while 42% of urban polling stations saw turnouts higher than the average.

The report echoed sentiments expressed by various Election Observer Missions (EOMs), stating that the general elections took place in a restricted political environment, with the SADC Election Observer Mission report receiving criticism from the ruling party, while many other observation missions presented similar findings.

The ERC's report underlines the need for fair and transparent elections and highlights the challenges faced in ensuring full participation and access to the voting process, particularly in urban areas.