Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa won his second term during the elections in the country, prompting the opposition party, led by Nelson Chamisa, to allege that there was a "gigantic fraud."
The claims were made after authorities declared the incumbent president the recent election winner. The situation comes as there were allegations of voter intimidation and a crackdown on government critics.
Zimbabwe Elections Conclude
The winner of the presidential race was announced on Saturday by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, which has members chosen by the president himself. Mnangagwa was said to have won a second five-year term after getting more than 52% of the total vote.
The commission's results revealed that opposition candidate Chamisa got roughly 44% of the vote. The winner was announced after elections were held on Wednesday and extended through Thursday after several regions, including Zimbabwe's capital, Harare, did not get their ballots on the scheduled time, as per the Washington Post.
In a social media post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Chamisa said that the current administration stole the people's voice and vote but will be unable to steal their hope. During a news conference, he also addressed the media, saying that the nation suffered from a vicious cycle of disputed elections.
Chamisa accused the president of the country, who initially came into power after a military takeover in 2017, of staging a coup against the recent ballot. He added that everyone in the nation counts and addressed Mnangagwa, saying he is not the last or only Zimbabwean.
The opposition leader, who previously ran for the position in 2018, stopped short of formally contesting the recent election results. Under the country's Constitution, candidates who wish to challenge the results must file a petition with the Constitutional court within seven days of the commission's declaration of a winner.
Opposition Party Claims "Gigantic Fraud"
When Mnangagwa first became the country's president, he was known as "The Crocodile" for his ruthlessness. According to BBC, he also promised the nation's people that he would work on a new start for the citizens of Zimbabwe.
But last month, Zimbabwe experienced one of the highest inflation rates globally as prices in July jumped by 101.3% compared to the previous year. Additionally, unemployment was still an issue, with only about 25% of the country's people having formal jobs.
A spokesman for the Chamisa's Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC), Prime Mkwananzi, said that the opposition party had not yet signed the final tally, which he considered "false." He noted that they could not accept the election results and would soon make their next move.
The recent vote was closely monitored across southern Africa as a test of support for Mnangagwa's ZANU-PF, which has ruled for 43 years. The party has been battered by disastrous economic management and accused of authoritarianism.
On Friday, foreign poll monitors argued that the Zimbabwe elections failed to meet regional and international standards. On the same day, the head of the European Union's observer mission argued that the vote happened while there was a "climate of fear" across the region, said Aljazeera.
