IRI/NDI Zimbabwe International Election Observation Mission Final Report 11 Post-Election Period In addition to the events of August 1, the immediate post-election period was further tainted by a crackdown on opposition activists in certain parts of the country, including opposition activists being subjected to beatings and threats that forced some into hiding. In addition, warrants were issued for the arrests of senior opposition officials. On August 10, Chamisa submitted a court petition challenging the ZEC’s announcement that Mnangagwa had won the election. Chamisa argued inter alia that he should have been declared the election victor or, at the very least, that a runoff was required since Mnangagwa did not receive the requisite 50 percent plus one vote once the disputed results were removed from the vote totals.1 On August 22, the Constitutional Court held a hearing to review Chamisa’s challenge. The hearing was televised for the public, which provided transparency to the process. During the hearing, both sides were meant to be able to present their arguments. Concerns were raised, however, that the seven-day period provided by the legal framework for challengers to collect evidence and submit petitions may restrict their ability to adequately prepare petitions. The Court unanimously ruled on August 24 that Chamisa’s petition did not meet required evidentiary standards. Both MDC Alliance and ZANU-PF filed a total of 16 petitions challenging the outcome of various parliamentary elections. Most notable was the case of Chegutu West constituency where the MDC Alliance candidate received the most votes, but results were mistakenly transposed resulting in the ZEC initially announcing the ZANU-PF candidate as the winner. Despite the ZEC, ZANU-PF and MDC all acknowledging that the MDC Alliance candidate received the most votes, the court threw out the MDC Alliance candidate’s petition on technical grounds. President Mnangagwa was sworn in as president on August 26. The new Parliament was seated on September 18, with 17 petitions challenging the outcome of various parliamentary elections still outstanding at the time. Despite a constitutional provision requiring parity, even with 60 reserved seats, female members comprise only 31 percent of the National Assembly and only 14 percent of ward councils. Priority Recommendations Zimbabwe’s 2018 harmonized elections presented the country with a historic opportunity to break with the past 18 years of political crisis and mark the beginning of a genuine democratic transition. ZIEOM notes several improvements to the electoral process compared to Zimbabwe’s past elections, though equally important shortcomings give rise to deep concerns that the process did not make the mark. Incremental improvements in the electoral environment during the preelection period were insufficient to establish broad confidence among the political competitors and Zimbabwe’s sharply divided populace. The petition was filed against the president-elect, the other 21 presidential candidates, the ZEC, its chairperson, and the chief elections officer. The MDC Alliance request for relief was framed as follows: “[Nelson Chamisa, in whose name the case is brought] submit that the evidence placed before the court shows gross irregularities which affect the validity of the election and its outcome. That being the case, I submit that the entire process must be declared invalid and accordingly set aside. As is borne out by the results on the ZEC server, I won the election and won it resoundingly. The court is therefore in a position in which it can declare the fact of my victory. This is also clear when the manufactured results given to first respondent are excluded from the final computation. Alternatively, the court has to order a fresh poll simply because the data that ZEC has is just too compromised to be made the basis of anything.” 1