The media’s performance in covering elections in Zimbabwe – in terms of professional conduct and quality reporting – has consistently fallen short of international, regional and local standards of good journalism. While the country’s electoral law and media regulations guide election related content, enforcement mechanisms to ensure compliance have been weak. The structure of the media, which lacks diversity and is dominated by media with links to the ruling party, and the conduct of media personnel as they gather news has also impacted on the nature of coverage…more

This paper on the role of traditional leaders in elections and electoral processes in Zimbabwe depicts a picture of a traditional authority whose existence is held in tension between the citizen expectations for it to be a neutral vanguard of the traditions, customs and community development on the one hand and, the ruling elite’s demands for it to be loyal and serve the interest of the incumbent party. Despite this, and notwithstanding the political polarisation prevailing in Zimbabwe, the paper shows that there is a consensus in the literature on the institution of traditional leaders regarding its centrality to development at the local government level. In sharp contrast, there is a general opposition to the involvement of traditional leaders in elections and electoral processes. The Constitution is used as the point of reference and authority in this regard owing to its unequivocal provisions that bar traditional leaders from playing any role in elections…more

Most disputes relating to elections in Zimbabwe are a result of disputes arising from contested election results. This has been a recurring electoral problem from one election to another and this paper seeks to unpack some of the issues giving rise to these electoral disputes centering around election results management. The paper discusses results management in general, results transmission and announcement specifically…more

The independence of an Electoral Management Body (EMB) is regarded as one of the most important pre-conditions to a credible and acceptable election. Yet achieving universally acceptable levels of independence has proven difficult for most electoral jurisdictions globally. In Zimbabwe, electoral contestations continue to be blighted by disputes emanating from real and perceived questions over the degree of independence of the electoral administration body..more

The centrality of political parties to democracy in Zimbabwe is unanimously acknowledged. However, this paper highlights the contradiction where political parties that have glaring capacity deficits expect that everything around them has to change to meet their expectations while they continue to operate the same way. That it, parties expect to be funded by the state, demand constitutional and electoral reforms yet remain silent on the pragmatics of how they too need to comply with the formal rules. The absence of a legislation regulating political parties in Zimbabwe is identified as the major problem. Consequently, the country is faced with challenges of election related disputes and conflict, volatile party system and lack of political party accountability. Furthermore, this is blamed for the administrative challenges that beset the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) during elections…more

As the influence of money in politics increases worldwide, there is a growing awareness among election stakeholders including state authorities, political parties, media and civil society of the need political finance reform, encompassing both political party finance and campaign finance. However, while regional and international standards require states to adopt measures to ensure transparency in political finance, in order to promote a level playing field for elections and prevent political corruption, the development of regulatory frameworks, as well as their effective implementation and enforcement, remain a global challenge…more

Boundary delimitation refers to the process of drawing electoral district boundaries. It is the process of demarcating electoral boundaries (constituencies, wards, polling districts) for the purposes of conducting elections. In Zimbabwe, delimitation is the process of dividing the country into constituencies and wards for the purposes of elections of persons to constituency seats in the National Assembly and of councilors to local authorities…more

The polling process continues to be a key area in the electoral cycle which is negatively affected by several disputes and election related conflict. The polling process herein refers to election procedures that occur in and around a polling station including opening, voting, counting and results transmission procedures. Most election petitions which were filed before the electoral courts in the past pre-dominantly pointed out suspected electoral fraud, maladministration or malpractices related to the polling process….more

Section 61(2) of Zimbabwe’s 2013 Constitution guarantees the freedom of the media. Media freedom is closely connected to the right to access information enshrined in Section 62 of the Constitution. In its role as the fourth estate, the media plays an important role in keeping the public informed. A more informed public is able to make better decisions in things that relate to day-to-day events and ultimately, the quality of life. The media’s informative role is even more important during the electoral cycle….more