early but results announced last or reports by election observers to the same effect. In any event, the applicant does not relate his averments in this respect to the nub of his challenge. The announcement of results, in whatever sequence, does not affect the outcome of an election. If a candidate garnered 10 votes in a particular constituency, that tally is not changed whether that result is announced first or last. In my reading of the applicant’s papers he does not challenge the correctness of the results declared for Harare province. 29.4. Further, and in any event, in terms of s66(1) of the Electoral Act the declaration of results for National Assembly elections is done at the constituency level by the constituency elections officer. The announcement of that result at the national command centre satisfies no legal requirement and as such grounds no legal challenge to the elections. 30. Ad Para 4.9 This is denied. 30.1. Whilst it is correct that the presidential ballots are counted first the transmission of results from a polling station by a presiding officer to the ward centre is done at the same time for all three electoral races under consideration i.e. the presidential ballots are counted first then we move on to the House of Assembly ballots and lastly, we count the local authority ballots. Only after all have been counted and their returns duly completed, does the presiding officer leave the polling station to take the results and the election residue to the ward centre.

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