Introduction.3 The registration of voters and the compilation and maintenance of an accurate national voters’ roll is generally recognized as an essential and key part of the electoral cycle. Since the voters' roll records who may or may not vote, it may ultimately have a determining effect on who wins the poll. Equally important, it is imperative that the voters roll, being the cornerstone of the administration of a democratic election, be accurate and up to date. While an incomplete voters' roll may disenfranchise those who might otherwise be entitled to vote, an inflated roll containing duplicate entries, names of persons who have emigrated, or dead voters, lends itself to electoral fraud. If the roll is inflated, a false and increased ballot count can be effected (through ballot box stuffing, multiple voting, or manipulation of the figures on returns) without appearing blatantly implausible against the number of registered voters. Inaccurate voters' rolls have a knock-on effect on the delimitation of constituencies, portraying an inaccurate number of voters for each area. In a predominantly first-past-the-post system, such as that adopted by Zimbabwe for all elections other than the presidential, this assumes increased importance as the number of “wasted votes” may be increased due to wrongfully delimited areas, based on a false presentation of the number of voters in a particular area.4 In the same way, an inflated roll acts as the justification for printing an excessive number of ballot papers, further opening possibilities for electoral fraud. This audit considers the extent to which Zimbabwe voters roll comes close to the ideal – that is, one where names which ought to appear on the voters roll do, and names which ought not to appear on the voters roll, do not. Methodological Note The audit has been greatly facilitated by a drastic reduction in the cost of the roll from almost $30 000 to $21005. and by a greater willingness by those responsible for electoral management to furnish the electronic copy of the roll in a searchable format.6 Furthermore, when conducting an audit of this nature, it is important to compare the roll with national demographics. Fortunately, statistics in this regard are available from the national census of 2012 and other recent reports compiled by Zimstat,7 the official body charged with this task. The Preliminary Census Report,8 however, does not disclose the statistic of prime importance required here, the number of adults in Zimbabwe. The analysis has thus proceeded on the basis of the percentages of the population in each age band supplied by Zimstat (the body which conducts the census)9, and used by Zimstat to calculate data in a 2012 survey on Health and Demographics in Zimbabwe.10 Zimstat is of the view that these percentages have not This introduction is reproduced, with a few minor changes, from RAU’s 2009 audit of the roll 2013 Vision – Seeing Double and the Dead (the 2009 Audit Report). 4 A limited proportional representation component has been introduced for the 2013 elections. The 80 seat Senate and 60 of the 270 National Assembly seats will be allocated on the basis of proportional representation. Votes in the Parliamentary election will, perhaps uniquely, have a threefold value as it is the proportion of these votes by Province that will determine all seats allocated under the PR system. 5 The Electoral (Amendment) Regulations No 18 S.I. 68 of 2013, $10.00 per Constituency, $5.00 per ward. This may have been reduced to $100 but no Statutory Instrument is available in this regard. 6 The erstwhile obstructive behaviour of the Registrar-General of Voters and unhelpful approach of the previous Zimbabwe Electoral Commission was noted in the 2009 Audit Report. 7 Poverty Income Consumption and Expenditure Survey 2011/12 Report Zimstat 2013(The Zimstat PICES Report. 8 Census 2012: Preliminary Report Zimstat December 2012. 9 The age band percentages appear in Appendix 1. 10 Zimbabwe 2010-11 Demographic and Health Survey Key Findings Zimstat 2012. The numbers do not appear in the report but were supplied by a Zimstat official. This data is also supported by the second, later report, The Zimstat PICES Report – see Table 2.3 therein. 3 4