Zimbabwe: First Day of Special Voting Marred by Serious Logistical Nightmares - ZESN

The Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN), a coalition of CSOs observing the ongoing special voting for security personnel and Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) officials in various parts of the country has issued a statement saying the process has been chaotic with multiple problems hampering the voting process. According to ZESN, their observers have reported recurrent problems in all polling stations around the country. These included the late opening of polling stations, shortage of sensitive voting materials such as indelible ink, ZEC stamps, ballot papers and boxes. They also stated that there was lack of consistency at polling stations on the availability of electronic and hard copies of the voters’ roll and the slow pace of voting in areas where the process had commenced. “In most of the centres ZESN observers noted that voting did not start at stipulated time. At some polling stations, for example at Dangababi primary school in Bubi district Matabeleland North, voting commenced at 1500 hours. Furthermore, some polling stations only received ballot papers after 1400hrs such as Fatima high school in Lupane district and Bubi Tatazela hall, which points to the lack of preparedness of ZEC for the Special Voting Exercise.” Read the ZESN Statement. AEP Get the latest news and updates on elections in Africa by following us on twitter @africanelections and like our facebook page