inconsistent with it is void to the extent of the inconsistency. It therefore follows that the revision of several other statutes impacting on elections was inevitable. In 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018, several legislative reforms to electoral laws and other related legal provisions were introduced by Parliament (through amendments to the Electoral Act and the introduction of a General Laws Amendment Act) and through Presidential Powers respectively, to advance political rights.3 The effectiveness and relevance of electoral reforms and their implementation in practice ahead of the 30 July 2018 elections must be measured against regional and sub-regional standards espoused in the AU Declaration and SADC Principles. There were no further reforms to other laws whose application impacts on the general ability of the citizens to participate in elections, such as the Public Order and Security Act (POSA), Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA), Citizenship Act amongst other laws. 4.4 Electoral System Chapter 1, Section 3 (2) (b) of the Constitution states the principles of good governance, which bind the State and all institutions and agencies of government at every level, include(b) an electoral system based on: I. universal adult suffrage and equality of votes; II. free, fair and regular elections; and III. adequate representation of the electorate The Constitution, Section 156 (a), provides that whatever voting method is used, should be simple, accurate, verifiable, secure, and transparent. Zimbabwe uses a mixed system of voting. The first-past-the-post system is used for the election of councillors and National Assembly representatives, where the candidate with a simple majority wins the seat. An additional 60 seats are reserved for women in the National Assembly using a proportional representation system based on the ratio of voters for the National Assembly. For the presidential election, Zimbabwe uses the majoritarian or two-round voting system. This means that the winner must garner 50% + 1 of the votes to avoid a second round or a run-off. If no candidate gets the required 50%+ 1 vote there is a second round of voting. Zimbabwe uses Proportional Representation for the 60 senatorial seats. Political parties submit closed lists to ZEC and, in order to promote gender parity, females and males 3 The 2013 Constitution recognises political rights of every Zimbabwean to vote and be voted into office in section 67. 21 | P a g e