The Wire

Over the weekend, Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, was returned to office in an election that saw his ruling Zanu P F party win 78 out of a possible 120 seats. However, claims have emerged of massive voter fraud. These claims suggest that the electoral rolls were out of date, allowing people to vote using the names of deceased people, and that measure preventing people voting more than once were inadequate. Also of concern are reports of threats by the Government that it will withhold aid – vital to the survival of the country’s starving population ? for any provinces that did not vote for the Zanu PF party. While the West has condemned the election, observing officials from South Africa declared the elections “free” and “credible”. Neither of these claims can be verified, as Zimbabwe refused entry to international election observers. So what does the future hold now for the African nation whose economy is on the brink of collapse? Dr David Dorward, the Director of the Africa Research Institute at La Trobe University, explains the implications of the vote.