The Electoral Resource Centre (ERC) said the 2023 harmonised elections will have a disputed outcome if no fundamental political, electoral and other key reforms are undertaken in the interim.
Addressing the media at the launch of the Election Reform Barometer in Harare on Thursday, ERC director, Tawanda Chimhini, said:
Zimbabwe has performed badly on issues to do with the independence of the electoral commission, transparency and accountability, conduct of our institutions, the role of traditional leaders and the role of the public.
If we continue going at the rate we are going right now and if we do not see any movement around these issues, chances are high that come 2023, we can literally write a Zimbabwe election report now where we highlight some of the issues that we have consistently raised as being problematic.
Zimbabwe has always had disputed elections since independence in 1980, with reports of violence and intimidation taking centre stage in every election.
The results of the last elections, held in 2018, were challenged in court by the opposition MDC and although the Constitutional Court upheld the incumbent’s victory, the MDC has refused to accept the ruling, insisting that the elections were rigged.