News / National
Zanu-PF losing candidates file election petitions
19 Sep 2023 at 01:26hrs | Views
Two unsuccessful Zanu-PF parliamentary candidates have taken their grievances to the Electoral Court, seeking to challenge the victory of their opponents in the recent polls.
The ruling party secured victory in 136 out of the 210 constituencies, with the CCC winning 73.
Francis Mukwangwari, who lost to Mr. Oliver Mutasa of CCC in Zvimba East by 189 votes, and Munyaradzi Tobias Kashambe, who was defeated by Mr. William Madzimbamuto of CCC by 755 votes in Seke, have filed electoral petitions with the Electoral Court. They aim to invalidate the election of the two CCC legislators, citing irregularities.
The respondents in both petitions are Mr. Mutasa and Mr. Madzimbamuto.
In his petition, Mukwangwariwa argued that electoral irregularities took place on voting day at Stapleford Siding station. Allegedly, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission officials provided voters supporting Mr. Mutasa with more ballot papers than necessary. He claimed that these voters received five ballot papers instead of the required three, with the extra two ballot papers intended for the National Assembly election. Despite alerting the police officers at the polling station, Mukwangwariwa claimed that no action was taken to rectify the irregularity. Additionally, he asserted that the ZEC's declaration of poll results for the constituency did not indicate any rejected votes or percentages, which he deemed irregular given that his polling agent had witnessed people voting with extra ballot papers.
Kashambe, in his petition, requested a vote recount, alleging mathematical errors in tallying the total number of votes received, leading to an inflation of Mr. Madzimbamuto's vote count. He also accused ZEC of improper conduct, citing instances where elderly voters were turned away for failing to locate their names without receiving any assistance. He further claimed that during the counting process, polling agents representing his political party were forcibly removed from the polling room, while the agents of the respondents remained.
Both Mr. Mutasa and Mr. Madzimbamuto have yet to respond to the petitions filed against them.
The ruling party secured victory in 136 out of the 210 constituencies, with the CCC winning 73.
Francis Mukwangwari, who lost to Mr. Oliver Mutasa of CCC in Zvimba East by 189 votes, and Munyaradzi Tobias Kashambe, who was defeated by Mr. William Madzimbamuto of CCC by 755 votes in Seke, have filed electoral petitions with the Electoral Court. They aim to invalidate the election of the two CCC legislators, citing irregularities.
The respondents in both petitions are Mr. Mutasa and Mr. Madzimbamuto.
In his petition, Mukwangwariwa argued that electoral irregularities took place on voting day at Stapleford Siding station. Allegedly, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission officials provided voters supporting Mr. Mutasa with more ballot papers than necessary. He claimed that these voters received five ballot papers instead of the required three, with the extra two ballot papers intended for the National Assembly election. Despite alerting the police officers at the polling station, Mukwangwariwa claimed that no action was taken to rectify the irregularity. Additionally, he asserted that the ZEC's declaration of poll results for the constituency did not indicate any rejected votes or percentages, which he deemed irregular given that his polling agent had witnessed people voting with extra ballot papers.
Kashambe, in his petition, requested a vote recount, alleging mathematical errors in tallying the total number of votes received, leading to an inflation of Mr. Madzimbamuto's vote count. He also accused ZEC of improper conduct, citing instances where elderly voters were turned away for failing to locate their names without receiving any assistance. He further claimed that during the counting process, polling agents representing his political party were forcibly removed from the polling room, while the agents of the respondents remained.
Both Mr. Mutasa and Mr. Madzimbamuto have yet to respond to the petitions filed against them.
Source - The Herald
